BLOOMINGTON — Xavier Johnson, listed as questionable on Saturday as Indiana faces No. 2 Kansas, will miss his fourth consecutive game.
Johnson suffered a left lower leg injury on Sunday, November 26 against Harvard, and it’s kept him out against Maryland, Michigan, Auburn, and now Kansas. He emerged from the locker room during warmups Saturday wearing sweatpants and a walking boot.
“Well, it’s been tough for him,” I mean, you go back-to-back years where you’re not playing basketball. We went into this season expecting him to be on the floor. He’s not there,” said IU head coach Mike Woodson during a media availability over Zoom on Friday. “I know it’s tough on him. It’s tough on us. But we’ve got to keep marching along based on who we got in uniform until he gets back. When that is, I don’t know yet. I just don’t.”
Johnson broke his right foot last season at Kansas.
Meanwhile, CJ Gunn, Malik Reneau, and Kel’el Ware were all also listed as questionable to face the Jayhawks, and all were in uniform and warming up pregame. Jakai Newton remains out — and as Woodson said on his radio show earlier this week, he’s unlikely to play this season.