Bridges' injury leaves Michigan State really, really short
The frontcourt was supposed to be a major strength for Michigan State this season, but it's Dec. 1 and the Spartans only have one player over 6-foot-6 on the active roster.
Head coach Tom Izzo announced that star freshman Miles Bridges, who is currently leading the team in rebounding with eight per game, injured his ankle on Tuesday against Duke, and is out indefinitely.
He joins Gavin Schilling and Ben Carter, who both stand 6-foot-9, on the bench for the foreseeable future due to injury.
Here's the very short roster the Spartans will forge ahead with as Big Ten conference play looms in a couple weeks:
| Player | Height | Rebounds/Game | Minutes/Game |
|---|---|---|---|
| Eron Harris | 6-3 | 3.6 | 24.6 |
| Nick Ward | 6-8 | 5.5 | 15.6 |
| Matt McQuaid | 6-4 | 1.9 | 23.8 |
| Cassius Winston | 6-0 | 1.5 | 17 |
| Josh Langford | 6-5 | 2 | 16 |
| Lourawls Nairn Jr. | 5-10 | 3.4 | 26.1 |
| Kenny Goins | 6-6 | 4.6 | 20.9 |
| Alvin Ellis III | 6-4 | 1.9 | 10.8 |
| Matt Van Dyk | 6-5 | 1.3 | 6.6 |
| Kyle Ahrens | 6-5 | 1 | 6.5 |
| Greg Roy | 6-3 | 1 | 2 |
| Conner George | 6-3 | 2 | 2 |
At 6-foot-8, freshman Nick Ward is the only remaining player who stands over 6-foot-6, and the only player currently averaging more than five rebounds per game. He has also only played more than 20 minutes once in his brief career, something that is almost sure to change.
One positive for the Spartans is they have finally gotten through the murderous start to the schedule, and now face five straight opponents from smaller conferences.
Izzo is a hall-of-fame coach, but this could be one of the toughest tasks of his legendary career.