The LSU Tigers have been a major disappointment so far this season as they are 16-11. LSU was ranked 21st in the preseason AP Poll, but instead of being one of the best teams in the nation the Tigers are fighting for their NCAA tournament lives. The Tigers have had to deal with some injuries this season which has played a role, but they have been mostly healthy recently. Keith Hornsby was the key piece missing early in the season, and now he may miss the end of the season too, according to Jeff Goodman of ESPN.
Hornsby missed LSU's first seven games as he was dealing with a hernia injury. Hornsby came back for LSU's loss to Houston, but he has reportedly not been playing at 100 percent this season. Now it seems as though Hornsby has suffered a setback as he aggravated the hernia and may be forced to miss the rest of the season. Head coach Johnny Jones said there is no timetable on Hornsby's return and that there is a very real possibility he may not come back this year, according to Adam Zagoria of SNY.tv.
This is a huge blow to LSU because Hornsby is the team's second leading scorer at 13.1 points per game and the team's best perimeter shooter making 42 percent of his threes. The Tigers will have to go on a nice streak to get in the tournament, and they will likely have to do so without their best three-point marksman.
As of Monday afternoon, Joe Lunardi of ESPN has LSU as one of the first few teams out of the tournament which means they have plenty of work to do. LSU's upcoming schedule does give them a few of opportunities to get big wins and work their way into the tournament (Florida at home, at Kentucky, SEC tournament), but those will be tough games especially without Hornsby.
Not only is this bad news for LSU, but it is unfortunate news for Hornsby who is a senior this year. There is still a possibility he could get back on the court, but it seems likely his college career could be over with this injury. Hornsby is not projected to be selected in the upcoming NBA Draft, but he may get a shot with a team because of his shooting ability. Regardless of what happens to Hornsby after this year, you hate to see a kid's college career end because of an injury.
