Alijah Martin injury update: Status of Florida guard revealed vs. Mississippi State

On Monday, Florida head coach Todd Golden told reporters that he expects Alijah Martin to play against Mississippi State on Tuesday, per Jon Rothstein. Martin missed Florida’s win over Auburn on Saturday due to a hip injury.

Martin is Florida’s second-leading scorer this season, averaging 15.3 points per game while shooting 45.2% from the field and 34.0% from beyond the arc. Martin also averages 4.9 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.7 steals per game.

The senior guard suffered the hip injury in Florida’s 86-75 win over Vanderbilt on Feb. 4. Although Martin initially left the game due to the injury, he returned and finished with eight points in the win. The day after the win, Golden raved about Martin’s toughness.

“Alijah is questionable. He had a pretty severe hip pointer [injury] in the first half on Tuesday night,” Golden said. “I thought he did a great job in the second half after struggling in the first and then dealing with the injury, coming back and playing really well, competing really well in the second half.

“Had some big baskets for us, got some big stops. He’s hasn’t been practicing the past couple days. Hopefully he can do some stuff (Friday). He’s a great competitor.”

Alijah Martin’s fellow Gators stepped up in his absence on Saturday, defeating No. 1 Auburn in stunning 90-81 fashion. In the win, Walter Clayton Jr. tallied a team-high 19 points and nine assists while shooting 4-8 from 3-point range.

Not to be outdone, Alex Condon recorded a 17-point, 10-rebound double-double, his fifth of the year. For his efforts, he was named the SEC Player of the Week.

Condon is just the eighth player in program history and just the third frontcourt player (Joakim Noah, Colin Castleton) to earn multiple SEC Player of the Week honors in a single season. He also reeled in the honor following his double-double in Florida’s win over Tennessee on Jan. 7.

On Monday, Todd Golden gave Condon his flowers.

“He’s fearless,” Golden said. “I think that’s one of the best compliments I can give for a player. A lot of times, whether it’s going up against Johni Broome, going on the road in a top environment, whatever it is, some guys might struggle with some confidence here and there. I think what I’m most proud of about our group is we go to Auburn, and we were fearless.”

Up next, Florida will square off against Mississippi State at 7 p.m. ET on Tuesday. The game will air live on ESPN2.