Aaron Cosby’s Injury Hurts Illini But Not Insurmountably
Posted by Eric Clark on January 22nd, 2015llinois’ season hasn’t exactly gone according to plan, as its roster has been ravaged by injuries on its way to a mediocre 13-7 overall record (3-4 Big Ten). News released prior to Wednesday night’s game against Purdue (a 66-57 win) revealed that junior guard Aaron Cosby tore the retina in his left eye early in Sunday’s 80-74 loss to Indiana, playing approximately 16 minutes with the injury. The Seton Hall transfer went 0-of-5 from three-point range in that game, but has been a solid contributor — 7.6 PPG, 3.6 RPG — for John Groce’s team all season. The junior is expected to miss the next two weeks.
Junior Aaron Cosby suffered a torn retina in his left eye Saturday vs. Indiana. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
Illinois’ backcourt was one of the deepest in the Big Ten heading into this season with experienced guards Tracy Abrams and Rayvonte Rice returning, young but seasoned sophomores Malcolm Hill and Kendrick Nunn back, and transfers Ahmad Starks and Cosby entering. Abrams of course tore his ACL before the season even began, and Rice is currently sidelined with a broken hand. Hill has been solid – his high-water mark of 28 points and seven rebounds coming in the team’s upset of Maryland. Cosby was a 38.8 percent three-point shooter in his two years at Seton Hall and was expected to be a legitimate scoring threat but he has struggled from both long-range (31.1 percent) and inside the arc (25.9 percent). His turnover rate is also the second highest among Illini guards this season (15.3 percent). Despite all of those ugly offensive numbers, Illinois’s disappointing season will be worse for wear without him in the lineup for the next two weeks.
Luckily, after beating Purdue last night, the Illini should only be without him for two more games. They’ll travel to Minnesota on Saturday, a game in which they must take good care of the ball. Cosby’s injury will likely result in more playing time for sophomore Jaylon Tate, a player who is incredibly efficient at creating shots for his teammates and holds a team-high 28.2 percent assist rate but who also holds the team’s worst turnover rate at 26.3 percent. The Gophers thrive on miscues, boasting the nation’s third-best steal percentage (15.2%). Now with one less gunner to worry about, Minnesota can choose to crowd Nnana Egwu inside and force the Illini to take jump shots.
They’ll close out January with Penn State a week later, a team that has lost all six of its Big Ten games, although five of those losses came by single digits with the only blowout against Wisconsin. The Lions don’t turn teams over very often, a characteristic that bodes well for Illinois without Cosby in the lineup. His absence will hurt, but that pain will be minimized against Penn State with the hope that he can return to the lineup in time for the February 3 game at home against Rutgers. In the meantime, Groce will hope that the replacements playing in Rice and Cosby’s spots can pick up some valuable experience in their absences. The rest of January shouldn’t be too difficult for Illinois to get through — and Rice is due back in about a week – but the Illini had better hope he can return to form quickly with a rough February slate looming.
