Indiana could be without two starters for season finale vs. Purdue
Indiana might be seriously short-handed when it travels to West Lafayette to play rival Purdue on Saturday.
During his weekly radio show, head coach Archie Miller said that Race Thompson sustained a facial injury in Indiana’s 64-58 loss against Michigan State on Tuesday. Thompson’s status for that game is currently set as a game-time decision.
Thompson is averaging 9.6 points and 6.4 rebounds per game for the Hoosiers this season.
Another Hoosier, Armaan Franklin, is likely to miss Saturday’s game against the Boilermakers to close out the regular season. Franklin is out with a foot injury and Miller confirmed that he’ll also be a game-time decision.
However, Miller said “We’re going into the Purdue game planning on not having Armaan.”
Archie Miller, on his radio show, says that Armaan Franklin is still out with a foot injury. But Race Thompson is also out. He had a fracture in "his facial area around his nose," which led to the mask, and getting hit at MSU made it worse. He had a procedure to fix it. #iubb
— Jon Blau (@Jon_Blau) March 5, 2021
Franklin is Indiana’s second-leading scorer this year, behind Trayce Jackson-Davis. Franklin is averaging 11.6 points per contest, as well as 4.2 rebounds and 2.2 assists while shooting 45% from 3-point range.
Indiana is 12-13 this season and desperately needs a big run to earn a bid to the NCAA tournament. The Hoosiers have not beaten Purdue in the last eight meetings.