Watford out indefinitely with hand injury

As if facing No. 18 Minnesota on Wednesday wasn’t enough, the Hoosiers will now have to do it without their leading scorer. 

IU sophomore forward Christian Watford will be out indefinitely after suffering a broken left hand in Sunday’s 84-83 overtime loss to Michigan State, IU coach Tom Crean announced.

Watford had surgery Tuesday, and no timetable for his return is set.

“Our road to getting better and our path on how we are going to get there with the people we have took another hit,” Crean said. “We feel for him because he’s coming off his best week. He was absolutely relentless on Sunday.”

“You take away your leading scorer, your leading rebounder and a guy that can make shots and plays the way he can, it’s going to affect your team.” 

Watford is eighth in the Big Ten with 17.0 points per game. He also averages 5.8 rebounds and is sixth in the conference in free throw percentage at 83.5 percent.

The sophomore’s injury, though, is just one of a few major hurdles the Hoosiers have dealt with this season.

Junior guard Verdell Jones has missed the past three games with knee inflammation and is listed as day-to-day. IU sophomore guard Maurice Creek is likely out the remainder of the year with a stress fracture on his right patella.

Watford, Jones and Creek averaged a combined 38.2 points per game. In contrast, the remaining eight IU players totaled a combined 39.2 points per game.

“We’ve had a lot of injuries — guys that have started multiple games for us — so it’s tough,” IU junior guard Daniel Moore said. “Points, rebounds and assists are obviously key stats, so guys have to step up.”

The timing could not have been worse for IU with the Gophers coming to town.  

Minnesota boasts one of the biggest frontcourts in the Big Ten. Forwards Trevor Mbakwe, Colton Iverson and Ralph Sampson III each check in at 6-foot-8, 6-foot-10 and 6-foot-11 respectively.

The Gophers also present a challenge on the perimeter with sharpshooting guard Blake Hoffarber running the point.

“You can’t get buried down low with (Mbakwe, Iverson and Sampson),” IU freshman forward Will Sheehey said. “You can’t play behind them. With Hoffarber playing the point, we’re just going to have to get the ball out of his hands and not let him get comfortable shots.”   

Lacking Watford’s explosiveness in an already depleted lineup, the Hoosiers hope the crowd at Assembly Hall provides the extra spark needed to defeat another ranked Big Ten squad.

“Our team is doing everything it could possibly do to get better and improve,” Crean said. “But more than ever now, as we come back home tomorrow night, we have got to have the energy of this fan base at a very high level. It was incredible last Thursday, and we are going to need them more than we have all year.”