Penn State senior Puff Johnson suffers hand injury, will miss time
Before Penn State had returned to the Breslin Center hardwood after halftime on Wednesday night, the news was already grim. The BTN reported that Puff Johnson, exiting after just six minutes played with what appeared to be an injury to his right hand, would miss the rest of the game.
Friday afternoon, Nittany Lions head coach Mike Rhoades confirmed the injury would extend beyond the trip to Lansing. Meeting with reporters at the Bryce Jordan Center for his weekly press conference, Rhoades said that Johnson is expected to miss more time moving forward due to the injury.
“He suffered that injury Wednesday night. So he’ll be out for a bit,” said Rhoades. “He’s still being evaluated by the doctors, but he’ll be out for a bit.”
Starting 17 games this season, Johnson has been a crucial piece of Penn State’s core rotation. He’s one of six players averaging double-figures scoring, good for 10.2 points per game on 54.3 percent shooting from the floor. His 74 rebounds are fourth, with 28 offensive boards good for second. His 81.0 percent shooting from the free throw line is third among the Nittany Lions’ heavy usage players. And, knocking down 13 of 43 shots from beyond the arc, he’s fifth in makes from deep.
Penn State loses key piece of starting rotation
The news is particularly dispiriting for Penn State in the midst of what has been a brutal stretch of the schedule. Dropping each of their past four games, most recently in an 90-85 decision at Michigan State, the Nittany Lions will have to carry on without one of the primary contributors on both ends of the floor the rest of the way.
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According to Rhoades, that will demand a combination of players, both young and experienced, who understand Johnson’s role and what he brings to the team.
“Some of the young guys gotta step up. Kachi (Nzeh) has been playing more and more, so we’ll be able to move him over to that four spot. And of course Zach (Hicks) and Nick (Kern) have played that position, too,” said Rhoades. “So I hate to say it like this, and it’s because of how valuable Puff is to us, but everybody goes through this. Next man up mentality. And, we play different ways and different guys, so guys are familiar with what we have to do.”
Earlier this season, Rhoades made as much plain as he described the impact of having a veteran player who could solidify what has at times been a tenuous rotation in the paint. While the return for freshman Miles Goodman from a lengthy injury recovery this offseason provides help for Yanic Konan Niederhauser and Kachi Nzeh, Johnson’s absence will be felt nonetheless.
“He’s a high level character kid with toughness and an edge of competing, and he plays really hard. He put on 15 pounds in the off season, and that’s huge,” said Rhoades. “Small ball five in the Big Ten. You don’t think of that, right? But because he’s so much stronger and he’s mature, he gets it and I’m really proud of him.”
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