Adreian Payne has missed the last five games with a sprained foot, and it finally caught up to the Spartans on Saturday as they lost to Michigan in East Lansing.
On Tuesday, the Spartans head down to Iowa City to take on the Hawkeyes, and head coach Tom Izzo doesn’t expect to have Payne in the lineup for that game.
“I don’t know if it’s a couple of weeks, but he’s day-to-day,” Izzo on the Big Ten teleconference on Monday morning. “He ran yesterday a little bit more, with more weight on it, but he’s very doubtful for tomorrow. How he does Wednesday and Thursday will determine the rest of the week.” He described Payne’s status as “slim to none to none.”
Payne isn’t the only player the Spartans are missing, as Branden Dawson will be out around another four weeks with a broken hand. And it certainly doesn’t help matters that Keith Appling is dealing with nagging wrist and hip injuries, although he won’t be sitting out with Michigan State’s starting front line currently out.