Mo Wague viewed as 'game-time decision' for Mississippi State
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The status of Alabama men’s basketball forward Mohamed Wague is still unclear as the Crimson Tide gets set to take on Mississippi State tonight in Starkville, Miss.
Wague missed Alabama’s last game against South Carolina, a 74-47 win, due to a foot injury he has dealt with since arriving in Tuscaloosa. After the game, head coach Nate Oats said the right foot Wague had surgery on in the summer “flared up” and kept Wague out of practice.
Thirty-six hours before the Tide faces the Bulldogs, Oats provided the latest on Wague’s foot.
“Mo has not practiced yet,” Oats said on Friday morning. “We’ve got a shootaround tonight over at The Hump, so we’re going to see how it responds to that. He’ll be probably a game-time decision. I mean, if he’s good today, we’ll see if it swells up tomorrow.”
A transfer pickup from West Virginia, Wague played in the first 14 games of the 2023-24 season and started eight straight contests at the five for Alabama. The 6-foot-10, 255-pound junior has averaged 5.5 points and 3.6 rebounds per game and shot 65.1 percent from the field.
Wague arrived at Alabama this summer and underwent surgery to repair a foot injury that was discovered during the physical process. He was in a walking boot for a while, even earning the nickname “Scooter Mo,” and did not play in the Tide’s preseason scrimmages. He was active for the 2023-24 season opener and played in the first 14 games before Tuesday.
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If Wague can’t play for the second game in a row, Alabama will turn to Nick Pringle, a starter in seven games this season. But the Tide (10-5, 2-0 SEC) will need all hands on deck in the road trip to Starkville to take on State big man Tolu Smith, who is averaging 17.3 points and 5.7 rebounds per game since returning from an injury of his own three games ago.
“Tolu is one of the best bigs in the league, and they give it to him,” Oats said. “He’s out there to get the ball. He posts up strong. He puts your guys in a bind. We’ve had issues with fouling in the frontcourt. If Mo can’t play, our depth has really taken a hit there.
“But Mo Dioubate has come along. I don’t know that he’s necessarily a five, but you can kind of bump Grant (Nelson) down to the five some, too. But it’d be good to have Mo Wague just to make sure we’ve got some depth up there to deal with Tolu.”
Alabama-Mississippi State will tip off at 7:30 p.m. CT and will air on the SEC Network.
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