CBB Injury Report – Hollins still out for Gophers
Published on Friday, 1/31/14, at 6:03 p.m. Eastern.
Updated on Saturday, 2/1/14, at 12:15 p.m. Eastern.
By Brian Edwards
My college hoops picks are on fire right now. I went 5-0 last Saturday, 3-0 on Tuesday and 2-0 on Thursday with a pair of underdogs (Cincy & UCLA) who won outright on the road. I’ve got five sides loaded today and I’m real strong on the Oklahoma-Iowa St. game. Check it out here if you wish.
Separate story coming on Arkansas suspensions within the hour (see twitter timeline along right rail of home page for the 4-1-1).
Minnesota will be without its leading scorer again for Saturday’s home game vs. Northwestern. Andre Hollins is recovering from an ankle injury sustained in the opening minute of a home win over Wisconsin on Jan. 22. Hollins averages 15.1 points, 4.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.0 steals per game. He was unable to play earlier this week in an 82-78 loss at Nebraska.
Cincinnati senior center Justin Jackson returned to the lineup in Thursday’s 69-66 win at Louisville. Jackson injured his ankle early in the first half of Sunday’s win at Temple and didn’t return. But he looked just fine against the Cardinals, producing 11 points, nine rebounds, three assists, two steals and two blocked shots in 37 minutes of playing time. The Bearcats won outright as nine-point underdogs and hooked up money-line supporters with a +350 return (paid $350 on $100 wagers). If you didn’t know already, now you do. Cincy is a legit national-title contender because it rebounds and defends as well as team in the country. And Mick Cronin has a senior leader in Sean Kilpatrick that dropped 29 points on U of L and always wants the rock at crunch time.
Rick Pitino’s squad had been without starting point guard Chris Jones for the three previous games due to an oblique injury. Jones came off the bench to play 23 minutes for U of L vs. Cincy. He only made 3-of-11 shots and missed all three of his attempts from behind the line. Jones finished with only six points and two rebounds.
Michigan St. center Adreian Payne will miss his seventh straight game today vs. Georgetown at Madison Square Garden in NYC. The Spartans are also without Branden Dawson for several more weeks. They fared just fine without their two best ‘bigs’ earlier this week in an outright win at Iowa as 5.5-point underdogs. Tom Izzo’s team is favored by eight vs. the slumping Hoyas, who are also without two key players, including Josh Smith who is done for the year due to academics.
Washington St. is hoping to get its best player back for Saturday’s game against in-state rival Washington. DaVonte Lacy (17.7 PPG, 4.7 RPG) has been upgraded to ‘questionable’ after missing six games in a row.
New Mexico seven-foot center Alex Kirk is expected to miss a third consecutive game Saturday vs. San Jose St. Kirk, who averages 14.0 points and 8.9 rebounds per game, is ‘doubtful’ against the Spartans due to a foot injury. The Lobos have won both games without Kirk both straight up and against the spread.
TCU center Karviar Sheperd is ‘doubtful’ Saturday at Texas Tech because of a finger injury. Sheperd averages 8.4 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.1 blocked shots per game.
Air Force won’t have its starting point guard and leading scorer for a second straight game Saturday at Nevada. Tre Coggins didn’t make the trip for the Falcons, who lost but covered Wednesday at Boise St. Coggins averages 17.4 points, 2.8 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.
After starting 4-1 in SEC play, Georgia has dropped back-to-back games. One reason why has been the absence of Kenny Gaines, who missed both defeats with a leg injury. Gaines is a question mark has been downgraded to ‘doubtful’ Saturday at Auburn, which has a quick turnaround after smashing arch-rival Alabama 74-55 on Thursday night. Gaines is averaging 12.5 points per game. UGA guard Juwan Parker (4.7 PPG, 3.9 RPG) is also ‘questionable’ due to a hamstring issue. For what it’s worth, a rare packed house is expected at Auburn Arena today because the football team is being presented the Iron Bowl trophy at halftime.
Wisconsin Green Bay is hoping to get center Alec Brown back for Saturday’s home game vs. Wright St. Without Brown, the Phoenix got thumped 75-60 Thursday at Valpo. Brown, who is ‘questionable’ with a shoulder injury, averages 16.5 points, 6.2 rebounds and 3.3 blocked shots per game.
Idaho guard Glen Dean (11.9 PPG) is ‘doubtful’ Saturday vs. Seattle with a sprained ankle. The Vandals have lost two of three non-lined games that Dean has missed over the last two weeks.
Dartmouth’s Gabas Maldunas has a torn ACL and will miss the remainder of the season. The Big Green got drilled at home by Harvard (80-50) in its first game without Maldunas (11.2 PPG, 8.5 RPG) last Sunday.
Arkansas Little Rock will probably be without James White for a fourth consecutive game next Friday at Tulsa. White averages 11.4 points and 5.9 rebounds per contest. He is listed as ‘doubtful’ against the Golden Hurricane. The Trojans are 2-1 both SU and ATS without White.
