The injury-plagued career of senior forward Damir Krupalija took another depressing turn Tuesday for Krupalija–and the slumping Illinois basketball team.
Coach Bill Self said an MRI test taken Monday revealed that Krupalija sustained a stress fracture in his left foot in Sunday’s loss to Michigan State at Assembly Hall. That’s the same injured foot that forced him to miss six games in December and January.
He will undergo surgery Wednesday to have a metal plate inserted over the injured bone.
The earliest Krupalija could be back is the Big Ten tournament in Indianapolis March 7-10, but Self said that is a best-case scenario.
“There’s a chance he may not be back at all, but that’s not what the doctors are saying,” Self said.
Krupalija was given the option of resting the foot, but Self said team physicians told him recovery time would be the same with or without surgery.
Krupalija originally injured the foot Dec. 22 against Missouri. The initial diagnosis was a sprain but that was later upgraded to “the early stages of a stress fracture.”
Krupalija returned to action against Wisconsin Jan. 23, but largely has been ineffective in the four games since. He scored five points in 14 minutes against Indiana and four points in 10 minutes against Ohio State but went scoreless against the Badgers and Spartans. He also grabbed seven rebounds in the four games.
“I hate to say it but we really haven’t had him since Missouri,” Self said. “He hasn’t been able to run or jump, and when you’re hurt you’re not as confident. It’s a big loss because I felt that when we got Damir and Lucas [Johnson] back we’d only be a couple of weeks away from being ourselves again. That hasn’t panned out yet.”
Johnson exceeded all expectations by returning to the Illinois lineup Jan. 23, three months and a day after having ACL surgery. But like Krupalija, Johnson has struggled to regain his form, averaging only 3.5 points and two rebounds in four games. With Johnson or Krupalija both out or ailing, Illinois (15-7, 4-5) is 5-5 in its last 10 games and has lost three straight in Big Ten play heading into Thursday night’s game at Michigan.
Krupalija has missed playing time each of the last three seasons. As a sophomore he missed five games with a sprained toe and last year sat out eight games after preseason knee surgery. He was injured Sunday when he tumbled to the floor after attempting a layup. A Michigan State player landed on his foot.
Self said Krupalija won’t encounter long-term effects from his latest injury and “would be totally fine in three to six months without surgery. The problem is it takes time to heal and we don’t have that time.”
