Penn State will be without fifth-year senior Puff Johnson for the ninth straight game as he recovers from a right-hand injury.
Johnson sustained the injury on Jan. 15 against then-No. 12 Michigan State. The former North Carolina Tarheel was having a breakout season, averaging a career-high in points (10.2), rebounds (4.4), and field-goal percentage (54.3%).
During Monday’s media availability, Mike Rhoades was asked if it would be fair to assume Johnson would not play going forward.
“Yes. Yeah, you are correct on that,” Rhoades said. “The number one thing I said in the summer was we got to stay healthy. We all knew that and losing him really hurts. But, you know, other teams lose guys too. So, I’m not making excuses, but we really miss him.”
Johnson had proved to be a valuable two-way player for the Nittany Lions, offering positional size and 3-point shooting.
Add Nittany Sports Now as a preferred source in Google! Click here to add us.“He’s the guy that is sound (in his) approach,” Rhoades said Monday. “(He’s) physical, big, you know, makes open 3s. So, you have to play him. You have to guard him. You can’t be gimmicky on your defense with him out there at the four.
“And you know, when he played the five – because he’s big and strong and mature – he did a heck of a job. And that gave us another added bonus with him … It definitely was a tremendous loss, and I think you’re seeing it … right now.”
Since Johnson has been out, Penn State has gone 1-7, dropping to the bottom of the Big Ten standings. On Wednesday, the Nittany Lions will look to end their seven-game losing streak against Nebraska (6:30 p.m. EST, BTN).
