Indiana Women's Basketball: Grace Berger Loses the Leg Brace on New Year's Day

Ahead of the Nebraska game on New Year's Day, Hoosier senior point guard Grace Berger was spotted at warmups without her right leg brace.

© Saul Young/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — The new year brings good news as Indiana women's basketball senior guard Grace Berger was spotted walking around at warmups without a leg brace ahead of the Nebraska game.

Berger isn't suited up to play, but the leg brace that once extended from her upper right thigh to her lower ankle is gone. She's wearing loose sweat pants but doesn't appear to be hiding any large brace.

In late November, the star point guard went down with a right knee injury at the Las Vegas Invitational. Within the Hoosiers' third offensive possession, Berger fell to the floor clutching her knee. Indiana head coach Teri Moren even shed some tears in the post game press conference.

When the Hoosiers returned home that Sunday, Berger got an MRI and was ruled as out indefinitely. However just this week, Moren said Berger is getting better, and she's pleased with her recovery process. 

It was never revealed what kind of knee injury Berger had since teams usually keep that information pretty private, but it can be assumed it wasn't anything too detrimental since she's walking on it New Year's Day.

Indiana managed just fine without their star point guard and won seven games without her including the Auburn one where she first went down. However, the competitive Big Ten conference caught up to No. 4 Indiana as Michigan State defeated the Hoosiers 83-78 on Thursday.

A specific return date for Berger most likely won't be revealed, but the lack of brace shows she's on her way to a faster recovery than most anticipated.

Related stories on Indiana women's basketball

• HOOSIERS TO PLAY NEBRASKA AT HOME The Hoosiers will look to bounce back from their loss to Michigan State by welcoming Nebraska to Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on New Year's Day. This broadcast is Indiana's first game of the season featured on the main ESPN. CLICK HERE
• HOLMES MOVES UP NO. 15 LEADING SCORER IN PROGRAM HISTORY Senior forward Mackenzie Holmes posted 32 points in the Hoosiers' loss to Michigan State on Thursday, which bumped her up to No. 15 on Indiana's all-time leading scorers list. CLICK HERE
• INDIANA LOSES FIRST GAME OF SEASON TO MICHIGAN STATE The No. 4-ranked Hoosiers snapped their undefeated record, losing to Michigan State 83-78 on the road. Despite the 'L', senior forward Mackenzie Holmes dropped 32 points for her new career-high performance. CLICK HERE