If you need to use ibuprofen before a game I suggest taking it about an hour before the game. Unfortunately I have a bad ankle and knee that give me trouble, but I take ibuprofen an hour or so before the game so that it has time to work itself into your system. Then by the time you are ready to start running during your game you have a very limited amount of soreness to work out once you start. It usually takes only one or two trips down the floor for me to be loose.

Hope this helps.