The most recent information on John Hugley and Rivaldo Soares’ injuries in Oklahoma
Porter Moser does not think that John Hugley IV’s (knee) and Rivaldo Soares’ (ankle) injuries will end the season.
NORMAN — Porter Moser is hopeful that John Hugley IV and Rivaldo Soares’ injuries won’t be chronic problems.
Hugley suffered a knee injury during Oklahoma’s victory over rival Oklahoma State last weekend, which prevented him from traveling to Waco, Texas, for the midweek game. Meanwhile, Soares is recovering from an ankle injury he sustained late in Oklahoma’s loss at Baylor on Tuesday. Moser seemed upbeat that the two could return sooner rather than later, even though he wasn’t ready to provide a timetable for either player’s comeback.
This is encouraging news for No. 25 Oklahoma, who still have six games left in the regular season, starting this Saturday at 3 p.m. against Kansas, which is ranked sixth.
Regarding the injury, Moser stated on Friday, “I’d like to think its shorter term.” “I think that about both of them. As of right now, neither of them appears to be nearing the end of their season.
Prior to a top-25 Big 12 clash, Moser’s evasiveness over Soares and Hugley’s availability for Saturday’s game may be interpreted as a bit of gamesmanship, even though Oklahoma will undoubtedly learn more about their health by the end of the day on Friday. At the very least, Moser’s remarks from his appearance on the Sooner Sports Talk radio show on Thursday night sounded on Friday like a coach who is getting ready to be without two important rotational players this weekend.
Moser stated, “There will be some new guys in there, and it’s an opportunity to step up.” “Scenarios where one man falls and the next man rises are common. We need a few guys to step up now that we’ve lost two men.
Throughout the season, Oklahoma has mostly depended on an eight-man rotation; in their first seasons with the team, Soares and Hugley have both played important roles off the bench.
Hugley has spent the majority of the season as Oklahoma’s backup center. He replaced Sam Godwin off the bench the rest of the season, save for one start he made early in the season due to an illness. This season, the former Pitt transfer has averaged 8.4 points (on 54.8% shooting) in 17.6 minutes a game off the bench to rank as the Sooners’ fifth-leading scorer. In addition, he now averages 1.2 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game.
Hugley did not go to Waco with the squad, so Tuesday’s loss to Baylor was the first game this season that he did not play in.
