Michigan State forward Malik Hall back on the practice court, ready for Badgers, despite ankle scare

East Lansing, Mich. – Michigan State basketball coach Tom Izzo put in a special phone call to Malik Hall on Sunday morning, the day after the Spartans’ 59-53 victory over Michigan. It wasn’t a phone call of congratulations, but one of concern.

Izzo was startled on Saturday night when watching film of Hall rolling his ankle during a loose ball scramble in the final seconds of the first half of Saturday’s game. 

“He rolled that thing,” Izzo said during Monday’s weekly press conference. “That thing on film was even more scary. I called him the next morning after I watched the film that night because of the way he rolled that thing. The outside of his ankle was almost on the floor.”

Hall, who missed eight games earlier this year with a stress reaction in his foot, played only four of the first 13 minutes of the second half of Saturday’s game. The ankle injury didn’t aggravate his previous ailment, but he was at less than 100 percent health in helping Michigan State turn away a Michigan charge in the final minutes.

Hall scored 15 points in 23 minutes of playing time against the Wolverines. He and point guard A.J. Hoggard were the only Spartans to shoot better than 50 percent against the Wolverines.

Hall hit a crucial pull-up jump shot in the lane to give Michigan State a 49-43 lead  with 3:30 to play.

Hall said he feeling okay after the game, but Izzo wanted to check in on Sunday morning to make sure he was still okay.

“He is doing pretty good,” Izzo said on Monday. “He practiced some yesterday (Sunday). There was no damage to the foot. Now it’s the ankle a little bit.”

Hall had three turnovers against Michigan. There were times he tried to create plays off the dribble, but with his foot quickness and ball handling not up to their usual standards, he had some fumbles.

“Sometimes the brain sees something and tells the body what to do, and the body tells you to go to hell,” Izzo said.

Izzo is confident that the progress Hall has made since returning to the lineup on Dec. 30 will continue. It will be crucial to Michigan State’s progress in the coming weeks with the Spartans surging at 11-4 and 3-1 in the Big Ten. A tough, rapid slate of games are ahead, beginning with Tuesday’s game at Wisconsin (7 p.m., ESPN), followed by a visit to Illinois on Friday, and then a game against Purdue the following Monday.

“Getting him back full in the next two weeks is going to be the biggest part because he is so versatile in so many ways,” Izzo said. 

Following the game, Hall wasn’t concerned about the ankle.

“It’s fine,” he said in the locker room on Saturday. “I’m not worried about it. I’ve rolled each ankle 50 times so at this point when I roll it I know it suck for a couple of seconds but after I get some time to calm down and let the adrenalin go away, I’m fine.”

Hall was most encouraged about Michigan State’s defensive performance against Michigan.

“We went through a lot of different coverages,” Hall said. “Knowing that we can go in and out of different coverages and everyone staying on the same page is really helpful.”

They will need that defense to stand up again on Tuesday. The Badgers are 11-3, and 3-1 in the Big Ten.

Wisconsin 6-foot-9 forward Tyler Wahl missed Wisconsin’s game at Illinois on Saturday due to an ankle injury. 

“Wisconsin lost (79-69) but that was without Wahl,” Izzo said, “who I think will play tomorrow, but I don’t know for sure.”

Wahl is averaging 13.2 points and 6.4 rebounds.

“He is a lot like Malik Hall,” Izzo said. “Malik shoots it a little better, but he (Wahl) can guard multiple positions; he can guard the three, four, five and maybe even the two. He brings experience as a fourth-year guy. He is just one of those guys that has gone through their system, which is a very good developmental system, and he’s important. 

“You are always going to lose some players, but if you lose guys that mold everybody else together, that’s hard to lose. Him being out of that game was hard on them just like us losing Malik.”