Michigan State Basketball: Could Nick Ward be back by Michigan game?
Losing Nick Ward a couple of weeks back was rough, but Michigan State basketball could get him back soon. When will that be?
Nick Ward hasn’t played a game since Feb. 17 against Ohio State and even then, he missed most of the second half but Michigan State found a way to win and the Spartans are 2-1 in his absence, including a road win over No. 6 Michigan.
The loss to Indiana wasn’t solely because the Spartans didn’t have Ward, but he definitely could have helped matters in regards to rebounding and just having another body to run at the Hoosiers’ bigs.
The lack of depth reared its ugly head for Michigan State against Indiana in the second half and the Spartans just couldn’t hang on, losing the game by one after leading for 38 minutes.
Everyone was wondering after the game, “When is Nick coming back?”
Tom Izzo didn’t quite have an answer, but he did allude to the fact that his All-Big Ten center is getting close to a return and in his post-game presser, stated that ‘if I was a betting man’ he’d be back some time between the Michigan game and the Big Ten Tournament.
Sure, that’s good news, but the Spartans could use him against the Wolverines in a rematch that Michigan has been craving since that seven-point defeat to Michigan State in Ann Arbor last weekend. Izzo didn’t exactly rule out his return against Michigan and even stated that it was possible.
On Monday, Izzo gave his weekly press conference and ruled Ward out officially for Tuesday’s game against Nebraska, but said something that perked up just about every Michigan State fan’s ears.
Izzo says they start every practice before a home game by shooting a halfcourt shot. The only player to make one today? Nick Ward
— Matt Charboneau (@mattcharboneau) March 4, 2019
Not easy to do that if you don’t have a left hand that could be used, so it looks like Ward is right on schedule, or maybe ahead of schedule, when it comes to regaining strength.
The junior big man has been working hard, according to Izzo, to get back and this is a good sign that he could return by as early as Saturday’s season finale against the Wolverines.
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It’s not crazy to think that he could be back this week, especially if there’s a Big Ten title on the line.