Michigan State's Joshua Langford Ruled Out for Rest of Season with Foot Injury

Michigan State men's basketball head coach Tom Izzo announced Wednesday that junior guard Joshua Langford, who has averaged 15.0 points per game this season, is out for the rest of the year with a stress injury in his left foot.   

"It's with great sadness that I have to announce that after numerous studies, rehabilitation and an attempt at return, it has been determined that Josh will miss the remainder of the season," Izzo said.

"Josh has a stress injury that we caught fairly early and we had hoped that, with treatment and rest, he would recover. He has not, and will likely need surgery to prevent problems in the future."

Langford has been out with the injury since an 88-60 win over Northern Illinois on December 29. He played only 12 minutes in that contest before leaving early.

The Spartans have gone 7-1 in his absence and are 18-3 overall (9-1 in the Big Ten). They are the nation's third-best team heading into Wednesday, per Ken Pomeroy, and they stand with Virginia and Duke as the lone teams to earn top-seven marks in both adjusted offensive and defensive efficiency.

However, the Spartans' 73-63 loss to unranked Purdue on Sunday showed why they miss Langford.

The Boilermakers jumped out to a 37-19 halftime lead as the Spartans offense could not get anything going. Langford, who has connected on 40.3 percent of his three-pointers and 44.3 percent of his shots overall, could have helped to stymie the first-half rout.

As Izzo noted, Langford is one of MSU's best backcourt defenders and brings a lot to the team in terms of his intangibles:

"Throughout the process, Josh has done everything asked of him, while maintaining an amazing attitude and doing whatever he could to help his teammates. His selfless attitude is the reason there were tears throughout the meeting room when we shared the news with his team. I've never felt worse for a player than I do for Josh, but he's a very religious kid who believes everything happens for a reason. He's constantly telling me to not worry about him, but focus on the team. It's the reason I have so much respect and admiration for the way he's handled the injury."

With Langford sidelined, MSU has turned to junior forward Kyle Ahrens and freshman forward Aaron Henry in the starting lineup. Ahrens got the first crack at replacing Langford, but he is currently nursing a back injury, per Stephen Brooks of 247Sports.

Henry has started the last five games and has averaged 7.6 points on 63.0 percent shooting over that span. His efficiency is impressive, although he isn't a three-point threat like Langford (only one made three in his last five games).

Crowley Sullivan of Spartans Wire recently praised the first-year forward's "terrific athleticism" and ability to take care of the ball.

Michigan State does not play a Top 20 opponent until a road game at No. 5 Michigan on Sunday, Feb. 24. A home matchup with the Indiana Hoosiers awaits Saturday.