Midwestern Report
By ASA
Kansas Jayhawks
Kansas coach Bill Self said guard Tyshawn Taylor probably will continue to serve his suspension for an unspecified violation of team rules when the Jayhawks travel to play at Oklahoma on Saturday. Elijah Johnson replaced Taylor in the starting lineup and scored 15 points to go along with three assists and three rebounds. Johnson will continue to start with Taylor suspended.
Jayhawks’ Thomas Robinson was thought to be out until early March recovering from surgery to repair a meniscus tear in his right knee, but Robinson returned on Monday to play against Oklahoma State. The 6’9” forward averages 8.7 points per game and 6.4 rebounds per game in just over 15 minutes per game off the bench.
Indiana State Sycamores
Senior guard Jake Kelly may have played his last game with Indiana State. He last played on February 1st and is out indefinitely with mononucleosis. The Sycamore guard is third on the team in scoring at 9.3 points per game.
Now, second-leading scorer Carl Richard is doubtful for Saturday’s matchup with Southern Illinois. Richard suffered a knee injury during Tuesday's game against Northern Iowa after a dunk attempt. He averages 10.5 points per game and leads the team with 6.9 rebounds per game.
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Irish forward Carleton Scott tweaked his ankle against Providence on Wednesday. The senior captain remains questionable for Saturday’s game against Seton Hall. Scott previously missed four games this season with a hamstring injury, and the Irish went just 2-2 in his absence. Scott averages 11.5 points, 7.2 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks for the ninth-ranked Fighting Irish.
Texas Tech Red Raiders
Guard Mike Singletary did not travel to Waco last Saturday as he was still recovering from a bruised calf and strained MCL. Singletary is Tech’s second-leading scorer and top rebounder, but the Red Raiders pulled off a giant upset over Baylor without him. Singletary came off the bench in Tech’s last game against Colorado despite claiming he’s not 100 percent healthy yet. He scored 17 points and grabbed six rebounds in 29 minutes. He’s probable for Texas Tech’s trip to Oklahoma State on Saturday.
UW-Milwaukee Panthers
The Panthers have won eight on their last nine games including a road win over the first-place team in the Horizon league, Cleveland State. UW-M now sits in third place in the Horizon and will be a serious threat come conference tournament time.
Senior and leading scorer Anthony Hill sprained his ankle in the Panthers loss to Buffalo last weekend on Bracket Buster Saturday. Hill was questionable heading into Thursday’s game against Cleveland State. He played 17 minutes and scored 16 points in the upset. He isn’t 100 percent, but he’ll continue to play unless the injury worsens.
Northern Illinois Huskies
The Huskies have dropped eight straight games (2-6 against the spread) and have fallen to second-to-last in the MAC West. Things aren’t looking up, as they may be without leading scorer Xavier Silas along with two other key contributors for their next game. Silas injured his ankle in NIU’s last game loss to Central Michigan and remains questionable for Saturday. The Huskies would sorely miss the seniors 22.3 points per game.
Forward Lee Fisher and guard Bryan Hall are also questionable for Saturday’s game against Toledo. Fisher and Hall are key role players who combine to average eight points and 8.3 rebounds per game.
Southern Illinois Salukis
Starting center Gene Teague returned from a three-game suspension to play just five minutes against Indiana State on February 16th. He wasn't even on the bench for Senior night on Wednesday because of what head coach Chris Lowery called dealing with "personal reasons." It’s unlikely that Teague will return for the remainder of Southern Illinois’ season, and the Salukis will miss his 8.9 points per game and 5.3 rebounds per game.
Toledo Rockets
Guard Reese Holliday will miss the remainder of the season after suffering two stress fractures in his right foot on February 15th. Holliday was second on the team with 10.5 points per game and led the team with 6.5 rebounds per game. Toledo hasn’t won since January 19th and has just four victories this entire season and losing Holliday certainly doesn’t improve the Rockets’ chances from here on out.