DETROIT — Michigan State star Kalin Lucas will miss the rest of the NCAA Tournament after an MRI confirmed he ruptured his left Achilles tendon.
Lucas was hurt late in the first half of Sunday’s victory over Maryland when he landed awkwardly after a shot. Lucas, who leads the team in scoring — averaging nearly 15 points — assists and playing time, will be sidelined four to six months.
Spartans coach Tom Izzo said he hopes his team lost only Lucas for Friday’s game against Northern Iowa.
Chris Allen was limited to just four minutes against the Terrapins because of an injury to the arch in his right foot, Delvon Roe hobbled on his surgically repaired right knee and Raymar Morgan played with a broken tooth.
“We’ve got a MASH unit,” Izzo said. “The bottom of Chris’ foot is purple, Delvon is playing on one leg and Raymar looks like a hockey player with his tooth cut in half.”
Anderson enters NBA draft
STILLWATER, Okla. — Big 12 player of the year James Anderson said he plans to skip his senior season at Oklahoma State and enter the NBA draft. The guard averaged a Big 12-best 22.3 points per game while leading the Cowboys into the NCAA Tournament for a second straight year.
Penders steps down
HOUSTON — Tom Penders resigned as coach at Houston, ending a six-year tenure that culminated in the Cougars’ first trip to the NCAA Tournament since 1992.
The Cougars lost to Maryland 89-77 in the first round Friday night.
Penders, 64, insisted he has no retirement plans, saying it was simply time to find another challenge. He went 121-77 at Houston.
Footnotes.
Jeff Lebo, who went 96-93 over six seasons at Auburn before he was fired this month, was hired at East Carolina to replace Mack McCarthy, who stepped down to take a fundraising job in the school’s athletic department.
• Memphis must vacate its record 38-win season from 2007-08 after the NCAA rejected its appeal for using an ineligible player, believed to be Derrick Rose.
The Associated Press
