Michigan State beat Maryland on a last second three earlier this afternoon to advance to the Sweet 16 where they will face Northern Iowa.
However, they very well may have to do it without the services of point guard Kalin Lucas, who left the game in the first half and may have torn his Achilles’.
Here is the latest injury update on Kalin Lucas, posted on ESPN.com shortly after the Spartans’ game against Maryland ended:
Two-time All-Big Ten player Kalin Lucas was in a walking boot with whatMichigan State coach Tom Izzo says is likely a torn Achilles tendon.
That would make it almost impossible for Lucas to play for Michigan State against Northern Iowa in the Midwest Regional semifinals this week.
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“It looks like it might be a torn Achilles, to be honest with you,” Izzo said moments after the Spartans advanced thanks to a 3-pointer at the buzzer by Korie Lucious, Lucas’ replacement.
Lucas will have an MRI on Monday to determine the extent of the damage, so Spartan fans can hold out hope that the Achilles is not torn and that Lucas can somehow play. Izzo did say, however, that they were about 85% sure of the prognosis.
What a shame. Kalin Lucas was tremendous during the Spartans’ run to the title game last year, and despite an up and down regular season he had started out very well in this year’s tournament.
Luckily for Michigan State, they do not have to face Kansas and Sherron Collins next week, but Northern Iowa is a superb defensive team that would have caused the turnover-prone Spartans trouble even with Lucas.
I’ll update this post if anything surprisingly positive comes out of Monday’s MRI. As it stands now, it looks like Kore Lucious will need to be ready to step up and fill Lucas’ shoes. If his game-winning shot against Maryland is any indication, he seems more than capable of doing so.
Update: As of Monday morning, still awaiting MRI results, Tom Izzo now says he is “90% sure” that his Spartans will be without Kalin Lucas when they face Northern Iowa in the Sweet 16.
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* – Tom Izzo and Kalin Lucas photo credit: AP Photo/Rajah Bose via Washington Post
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