Indiana basketball: Malik Reneau leaves Hoosiers game with injury
That doesn’t look like good news for an Indiana team that is trying to get healthy.
Indiana has had tough luck from an injury standpoint this year. On a day when the Hoosiers were getting back talented big man Kel’el Ware, fellow Indiana forward Malik Reneau left the game early with an injury, according to Peegs.com’s Jared Kelly.
“Malik Reneau just came out of the tunnel. He has a huge limp on his left foot. Can barely walk,” Kelly posted. “Indiana just cannot catch a break from the injury bug.”
Reneau suffered the apparent injury going for a rebound at the 17:27 mark, according to Peegs’ Jeff Rabjohns. After returning to the bench briefly, Reneau went back to the locker room on crutches.
Indiana has already spent time without point guard Xavier Johnson, who missed seven games with a foot injury, and Ware, who missed the last two contests after suffering an ankle injury.
A blue-chip recruit out of Florida-based powerhouse Montverde Academy, Reneau signed with Indiana as the No. 4 power forward and No. 38 overall player in the 2022 class. He was a key reserve for the Hoosiers as a freshman, playing in almost 15 minutes per game and averaging 6.1 points and 3.7 rebounds per contest.
That turned into a starting, and starring, role as a sophomore. Reneau has started all 20 of Indiana’s games so far this season, logging 30.1 minutes per game and producing 16.7 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game while shooting 57.8% from the floor and 40.6% from behind the 3-point arc.
Indiana (12-8, 4-5) entered Tuesday night’s game against Iowa on a three-game winning streak, hoping to turn things around against the Hawkeyes with Ware’s return to the court. With home games against Iowa and Penn State, then a road contest against an Ohio State squad Indiana defeated earlier this year, this was seen as a stretch where Indiana could potentially reboot and get closer to the NCAA Tournament bubble.
