EAST LANSING -- Michigan State is trying to rebound from a decisive loss with its leading scorer and rebounder hobbled.
Spartans forward Joey Hauser has been limited in practice due to a knee injury in the days following the Spartans’ Sunday loss at Northwestern, but Spartans coach Tom Izzo is hopeful he can suit up on Friday against Wisconsin.
“I’m hoping he’ll be fine to go by Friday,” Izzo said.
Hauser hit his knee against an opponents’ knee during the first half on Sunday in Evanston. Hauser left for the remainder of the half but returned after halftime and played the second half with a sleeve on his knee. He finished with five points in 21 minutes in a 79-65 loss.
Izzo said on Wednesday that Hauser is dealing with a knee sprain but that imaging didn’t reveal anything more serious. The injury caused him to miss the team’s Tuesday practice and part of its Wednesday practice, during which he was “a little slow.”
Hauser’s availability for Friday will be determined by how his knee responds after going through the majority of Wednesday’s practice, Izzo said.
“It was a sprain, but sprains are different for every guy,” Izzo said. “I’m hoping he’ll be fine to go by Friday.”
Hauser is Michigan State’s leading scorer at 12.1 points per game and leading rebounder at 8.9 per game.
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