Michigan State coach Tom Izzo said Monday that forward Branden Dawson will "probably play" in Tuesday's Big Ten opener despite sustaining a nondisplaced fracture of the left wrist Dec. 17 against Eastern Michigan.
"I just don't know to what level because of the injury," Izzo said in an interview with The Baltimore Sun.
Dawson sat out the last two games, including a shocking 71-64 overtime loss to Texas Southern at the Breslin Center on Dec. 20. The 6-foot-6, 225-pound senior is the leading rebounder (8.5) in the Big Ten this season.
Izzo knew that his team wouldn't be as deep or talented as it has been after losing three starters -- All-Big Ten guard Gary Harris, power forward Adreian Payne and point guard Keith Appling -- from last year's team that lost to eventual national champion Connecticut in the Elite Eight.
"We're not as deep as we normally are," Izzo said.
Izzo said his team's 9-4 record is also a reflection of a tough early season schedule, as well as a number of key injuries.
The Spartans, who came into the season ranked 18th, lost to two ranked teams, then-No. 4 Duke (81-71) and then-No. 11 Kansas (61-56) at neutral sites as well as at then-unranked Notre Dame (79-78 in overtime) in the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.
"We played Duke pretty well, and we had a chance to beat Kansas, we played Notre Dame on the road, but we have not had our top six, seven guys together very much at all, and that's been as big a problem as any for us," Izzo said.
Cleveland State transfer Bryan Forbes broke his hand in the preseason and has been inconsistent as a shooter, including starting the season 1 of 8 against Navy and, more recently going 1 of 9 in the loss to Texas Southern.
Freshman Javon Bess, who was recruited to play on the wing, broke his foot before the season and didn't get back on the court until the Eastern Michigan game. At 6-5, 205 pounds, he was asked to play power forward in Dawson's absence.
Sophomore guard Alvin Ellis III sprained an ankle in the season opener at Navy, missed six games and has struggled since returning.
Michigan State's loss to Texas Southern -- coached by former Indiana coach Mike Davis, who never won in East Lansing, Mich., while he was with the Hoosiers -- was one of several early season upsets in the Big Ten this season.
"I've been surprised by some of the losses, including our loss to Texas Southern, even though it was no Dawson, no this guy or that guy," Izzo said. "We had our chance to win it, other than that it was a letdown game. I think everybody's lost a game you hoped they wouldn't."
Izzo seems confident that the Spartans and the other perennial powers in the Big Ten will recover.
"The league will be very good, you watch," Izzo said. "Look at where people picked Maryland. They're 12-1. Look at where people picked Penn State. They're 12-1. The bottom of the league is much better. I don't think the top is quite as strong. Last year we had four teams in the top 10 at one time early.
"I think you'll see some teams that will bounce back. Injuries played a big key. We've had some. Maryland has had some. Scheduling becomes a big key. Maryland has played a very good schedule. Some teams haven't, we have. It's hard to evaluate it."
Izzo sees one constant from his years in the Big Ten.
"When you start going on the road in this league -- from places like here to Wisconsin to Maryland and everywhere else, it's a tougher league, there's a reason we led the nation in attendance," he said. "That's what makes it a little tougher once league play starts."