Mississippi State basketball announces Tolu Smith will miss non-conference play with foot injury

There’s no other way to say it: Mississippi State’s basketball team just released some crushing news in regards to the upcoming 2023-24 season.

According to a statement from head coach Chris Jans, senior big man and star player Tolu Smith has suffered a foot injury that will keep him out likely until SEC action. Here was that news and the statement from Jans:

“Tolu Smith injured his foot at a recent practice and is expected to return during SEC action.

“We’re going to support and care for Tolu’s mental and physical well-being during every step of the recovery process. We will continue to move forward with our preparations for the upcoming season as Tolu and his family expect us to. He will continue to serve as a team leader from the sidelines until we welcome him back on the floor.

“We will pray for a healthy and speedy recovery for Tolu and his family.”

Man, that’s just a massive bummer for Coach Jans and the program ahead of his second year at the helm. He led a promising first season that resulted in MSU’s first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2018-19, and last year’s group was led by none other than Tolu Smith, who averaged 15.7 points and 8.5 rebounds as the go-to guy. Then, this offseason, he opted to return for one final year and was likely to be a shoo-in for preseason All-SEC honors.

Luckily, Jans has a front-court that almost had too much depth, so there are plenty of replacements to lean on. Specifically, West Virginia transfer Jimmy Bell can step straight into Smith’s spot. The move felt odd when Bell committed this summer considering he was a starter with the Mountaineers all of last season and was coming in to likely backup Smith. Clearly, Bell didn’t plan for or want a Smith absence, but it does open the door for him.

Bell’s definitely a bruiser and a true center, which State desperately needs with Tolu Smith now out. Now, he’s not the offensive anchor Smith was, but Bell is fully capable of playing 20+ minutes as your team’s janitor in the paint. He just cleans up rebounds, takes up space and can bully smaller or less-physical forwards. In 2023, he averaged 4.8 points and 5.2 rebounds in 18 minutes per game while starting in all 34 contests.

The Bulldogs are still in good and experienced hands at center. Plus, the offense should remain solid with so many other contributors returning — like DJ Jeffries, Cameron Matthews, the starting backcourt, etc. — and a 20-point-per-game transfer in Andrew Taylor coming in. Plus, one of the most impressive players during the team’s summer tour was sub-six-foot freshman Josh Hubbard.

Tolu Smith’s injury is a huge setback, no doubt, but the Bulldogs are uniquely equipped to handle such a loss down low with their experience and depth.