Injuries to Xavier Johnson, Malik Reneau Loom Over Indiana's Win Against Iowa

Indiana senior point guard Xavier Johnson and leading scorer Malik Reneau both left the game with injuries during the Hoosiers' 74-68 win over Iowa.

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Indiana picked up a crucial 74-68 win over Iowa Tuesday night at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall, but it may have come at a cost.

Less than three minutes into the game, Indiana forward and leading scorer Malik Reneau defended Iowa's Ben Krikke in the post. As Krikke backed his way to the basket, he stepped on Reneau's foot, and Reneau appeared to have rolled his ankle before stumbling several steps toward the Indiana bench.

Reneau grabbed for his right ankle as Indiana medical staff huddled around. He hobbled off the court and grimaced in pain as he entered the tunnel. Reneau emerged a few minutes later on crutches, but he did not return to the game. 

Malik Reneau is out of the locker room still favoring right leg - had a towel over his head & now on crutches with training staff. #IUBB pic.twitter.com/14VqM2TZ3D

— Olivia Ray (@OliviaRayTV) January 31, 2024

The Hoosiers clung to a narrow lead throughout Tuesday's game, even without Reneau, who provides 16.7 points per game. But an old-fashioned 3-point play by Iowa point guard Tony Perkins gave the Hawkeyes a two-point lead with 2:20 remaining.

Indiana point guard Xavier Johnson responded by darting across the court and leaping for what would have been a highlight reel and game-tying dunk. Instead, Johnson was fouled by Iowa's Ladji Dembele and hit the deck hard. Johnson appeared to have braced his fall with his left arm, which he was grabbing in pain on the ground. 

Johnson walked to the locker room with his jersey pulled over his head and did not return in the final two-plus minutes of action. Injuries are nothing new for Johnson, who missed all but 11 games with a broken foot last season and missed seven more games this year with a foot injury.

Xavier Johnson goes down on his arm after this play and is escorted off the court. Prayers up for X 🙏 ❤️ pic.twitter.com/XPLfD2HHvt

— FOX College Hoops (@CBBonFOX) January 31, 2024

"I don't know the severity of X and Malik at this point," Indiana coach Mike Woodson said postgame. "But both went out kind of in pain. I'll know here when I get back there to see what the outcome of that is. But if we have to wait on them, we have to wait on them. But it's the next guy up. We've just got to get the next man ready to play."

On Tuesday, that next man was senior Anthony Leal, who has played sparingly throughout his four year-career but scored a career-high 13 points against Iowa.

"I think it's a way to rally us all together," Leal said. "One guy goes down, we know the next guy's got to step up. And we're all committed to winning and doing what we need to do win. Malik goes down, X goes down, we know we have to find a way to win and move on."

Next up, Indiana hosts Penn State on Saturday at Noon ET.

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