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Iowa center Luka Garza out indefinitely after surgery

Illinois v Iowa

NEW YORK, NY - FEBRUARY 28: Luka Garza #55 of the Iowa Hawkeyes dunks the ball in the second half against the Illinois Fighting Illini during the Big Ten Basketball Tournament at Madison Square Garden on February 28, 2018 in New York City. (Photo by Abbie Parr/Getty Images)

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Iowa announced on Friday that starting center Luka Garza will be out indefinitely following surgery to remove a benign cyst on his abdomen.

The 6-foot-11 sophomore started in 26 games for the Hawkeyes as a true freshman last season as he showed promising signs of being a positive Big Ten presence the next few seasons. Head coach Fran McCaffery announced the news in a release from the school.

“We are happy to hear that Luka’s procedure went well,” McCaffery said in the release. “Luka has had a phenomenal summer preparing for his sophomore season and we look forward to him rejoining his teammates on the court later this fall.”

Garza put up 12.1 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game as a freshman last season. It’s hard to say when Garza will return, but Iowa does have some options in the middle with him out of the lineup during the preseason. Tyler Cook can slide into that spot, while Iowa also has some younger options like sophomore Ryan Kriener and sophomore Jack Nunge are also no the roster.