Midwestern Report
By ASA
Each week, we will take an inside look at some key injuries and developments in College Basketball’s heartland.
Saint Louis
2009-10 leading scorer Kwamain Mitchell was reinstated this week following a suspension prior to fall practice. He didn’t play in Thursday night’s loss to Duquesne, but the junior guard who averaged 16 points a year ago would be a welcome addition to the 5-11 Billikens. Center and second leading scorer from 2010, Willie Reed, is also expecting to be reinstated sometime in the next week.
Perhaps the biggest problem for the Billikens is that head coach Rick Majerus missed his third straight game after suffering a cut in his leg. Majerus was injured in Saint Louis’ game against Bowling Green on January 1st when two players crashed into him and sent him into the scorer’s table, giving him a gash in his leg that would later get infected. Saint Louis plays again Saturday and it is uncertain if Majerus, Reed, or Mitchell will be back in the lineup. But if they are, you may find a favorable “play on” team.
Northwestern
Star forward John Shurna sprained his ankle in Northwestern’s blowout win over Mount Saint Mary’s on December 23rd. Shurna played, but struggled, in three losses to Purdue, Michigan State, and Illinois. Shurna, who is averaging 20.1 points per game, averaged just 9.6 points per game in the three losses (Northwestern was 0-3 ATS in those games). It appears that he is now healed, as he put up 24 and 16 points in back-to-back wins over Indiana and Iowa this week.
The Wildcats have a rematch with Michigan State on Saturday and things could turn out differently with a healthy Shurna (lost by just three points on January 3rd).
Southern Illinois
Center Gene Teague sustained an ankle injury on December 22nd and missed SIU’s next three games. He then played some ineffective minutes in two games before sitting out Wednesday night’s loss to Missouri State. Teague is third on the team in points, second in rebounds, and first in blocks. Teague’s status remains in question.
Starting guard Justin Bocot has been dealing with a knee injury but is battling through it. He came off the bench last night and played 17 minutes. He totaled 0 points, 2 rebounds and 2 assists. Normally a starting guard for the Salukis; Bocot is the fourth leading scorer and is first in steals but is clearly not 100%. Bocut will play on Saturday in a showdown with Northern Iowa.
Indiana State
Indiana State’s top two scorers, Dwayne Lathan and Jake Kelly, returned to the lineup on Wednesday and helped the Sycamores get a six-point win at Bradley. Other players stepped up in Lathan’s and Kelly’s absence, as Indiana State won three straight games without their top two scorers.
Neither player had an extended role in the win against Bradley (Kelly played just 16 minutes and had 6 points while Lathan played just 12 minutes and didn’t score), but with games against Creighton, Missouri State, and Wichita State in the next week; they’ll need their top-scorers healthy.
Kansas State
Star forward and Wildcats third leading scorer Curtis Kelly hasn’t played since December 18th. First he was suspended for receiving impermissible benefits. Since then, he’s been reinstated but has been dealing with a shin injury that held him out of Wednesday’s loss to Colorado.
Kansas State appears to be struggling mightily without Kelly as it has lost four of its past seven games (including an 0-2 mark in conference play) minus the star forward. Kelly, KSU’s third leading scorer, remains questionable for Saturday’s matchup with Texas Tech but expects to be back soon.
Detroit
Detroit’s third-leading scorer (11.6 points per game) and best rebounder (10.7 per game) Eli Holman will miss Friday’s key matchup against Butler with a suspension for fighting. He was tangled up with Illinois-Chicago’s Brad Birton late in the first half of Saturday’s meeting. Holman will be missed against Butler’s strong inside attack.
Guard Chris Blake played his first five games with Detroit since becoming eligible after the first semester. After transferring schools, Blake has provided a spark to this offense. He is playing around 20 minutes per game and is averaging 9.6 points per game (scored more than 11 points three times).
Illinois-Chicago
Forward Brad Birton will serve a one-game suspension for an altercation with Detroit’s Eli Holman which led to both players being ejected. Birton doesn’t average a lot of points (just 4.6 per game), but he is second on the team in rebounds and his presence will be missed in Thursday night’s matchup with UW-Milwaukee.
Birton’s contribution will be missed more if 6’9” center Darin Williams can’t go. Williams missed UIC’s last two games with an undisclosed injury and remains questionable for Thursday night. Williams averages 6.1 points per game (fourth on team) and 4.4 rebounds per game (third on team).
Missouri
Talented freshman guard Phil Pressey returned from injury to play against Colorado on January 8th. Missouri was starting to get key contributions from Pressey before a fractured finger sidelined him for four games. In his last three games before injury, the freshman amassed 27 assists with just seven turnovers (and averaged 9 points per game). He played nine minutes last Saturday but received 21 minutes in last night’s win over Nebraska. Look for more playing time for this talented freshman.
Kansas
Mario Little returns from a December 16th suspension on Wednesday night. The junior guard averages just over 6 points per game and 3 rebounds per game. Fellow guard Travis Releford will miss some time with a leg injury sustained in Sunday’s game vs. Michigan. Releford averages just over 5 points per game and 2 boards per game. Kansas has enough depth to play without Releford. Don’t expect a negative impact.