As Maryland continues the process of preparing for their first season as a member of the Big Ten, one of the key players for Mark Turgeon is senior forward Evan Smotrycz. Smotrycz, who began his college career at Michigan, averaged 11.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per contest in 2013-14 for a team that finished 17-15 and missed out on postseason play.
Unfortunately for Smotrycz and the Terrapins, his prepartions for the 2014-15 season hit a bump in the road Friday afternoon.
According to Daniel Martin of CSN Baltimore, Smotrycz suffered a sprained left ankle at the end of practice. As a result he’ll miss out on the team’s Midnight Madness scrimmage, with the basketball program stating via its Twitter account that Smotrycz will be re-evaluated on Saturday.
Smotrycz sprained his left ankle at the end of practice today and will be re-evaluated tomorrow morning.
— Maryland Men’s Basketball (@TerrapinHoops) October 17, 2014
Smotrycz is Maryland’s leading returning rebounder from last season, with Jake Layman (5.0 rpg) and Dez Wells (4.3 rpg) being next in line. Among the other front court players Maryland will look for contributions from this season are senior Jon Graham, sophomore Damonte Dodd and freshman Michael Cekovsky.