Chris Youngblood injury update: ESPN broadcast reveals status after eye poke vs. Auburn

Alabama is in a tight one against Auburn but has played the early portion of the second half without Chris Youngblood. An eye injury left him on the ground before going back to the locker room while seeking medical attention.

Just before the under-12 media timeout, ESPN’s Molly McGrath revealed Youngblood’s status, saying he is likely to return. The exact injury is an eye laceration, emerging from the locker room with a bandage in the area.

“You guys saw Chris Youngblood took a big hit to the face on his left eye,” McGrath said. “He ran back to the locker room with their athletic training staff to be evaluated. They spent a long time looking at that left eye. He ran back from the locker room with that left eye bandaged. I’m told he was treated for an eye laceration and will return.”

***UPDATE*** – The under-12 media timeout was taken and when coming back, Youngblood was back on the court. A massive return for Alabama if they want to pull out a victory in Neville Arena, hoping to split the season series against Auburn.

Youngblood suffered the injury when fighting for a rebound. Auburn’s Chad Baker-Mazara was fighting for the ball too but after missing, saw his swipe connect on Youngblood. Officials did review the play but determined nothing was flagrant, just being called a normal foul.

Injuries have been unfortunately a part of Youngblood’s lone season in Tuscaloosa. Offseason surgery was required and caused him to miss some time. Youngblood did not make his Alabama debut until Dec. 14 against Creighton.

Now in the thick of the season, not many have been as important to Alabama as Youngblood. He has proven to be one of the team’s top shooters, entering Saturday making 37.5% of his shots from deep. A nice catch-and-shoot piece for the Crimson Tide with a guard like Mark Sears controlling the offense.

This time of year does bring bigger-picture questions when it comes to injuries. No matter how the Auburn game finishes, Alabama will have an important weekend ahead in Nashville for the SEC Tournament. And then the NCAA Tournament will follow as Nate Oats wants to make another Final Four.

Youngblood is going to be an important piece if Alabama is going to find success moving forward. Hopefully, the eye injury turns out to be nothing serious, and can get back onto the court quickly.