Michigan State's Nick Ward has hairline fracture in left hand

EAST LANSING — Nick Ward is out Indefinitely with a hairline fracture in his left (shooting) hand that the Michigan State basketball forward suffered during the Spartans' 62-44 win over Ohio State on Sunday.

Ward returned late to No. 11 MSU’s bench after halftime. When he did come back to the Breslin Center court, Ward had his left hand heavily wrapped in green tape and did not start the second half.

He eventually tried to work through the pain twice but did not play the final 13:25 of the Spartans’ comeback victory.

The university issued a release with the news of the hairline fracture early Sunday evening, adding that Ward will be reevaluated weekly and that the hope is the 6-foot-9 junior will return by the end of the season.

The Spartans face Rutgers on Wednesday and travel to rival Michigan on Sunday.

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“It was a problem for us the second half …,” MSU coach Tom Izzo said after the game before the release. “We thought maybe he could go, but he just felt like he couldn’t go much.”

It is another significant injury for the Spartans (21-5, 12-3 Big Ten), who are in a first-place tie with U-M despite being without guard Joshua Langford for the rest of the season with a foot injury and with swingman Kyle Ahrens playing through a back injury.

Ward scored nine points and had four rebounds at halftime. He re-entered the game 59 seconds into the final period and played two stints after halftime that totaled 3:30, going without a shot but grabbing two rebounds.

Ward, who was not made available for interviews after the game, spent much of his time sitting on the bench using his right hand to support his left one or standing with his left hand pinned to his chest while in obvious discomfort. The tape extended from the bottom of his left wrist, around the middle of his hand and wrapped his fingers.

It was unclear how the left-handed shooter suffered the injury, though Izzo said it happened late in the first half.

“I didn’t even see it. I don’t know if he fell or if he got hit on a rebound,” Izzo said. “But when they came in, I mean, on the bench they said he hurt his hand. … It was hurting then, and they thought there was something wrong then.”

Ward, who was not made available for interviews after the game, spent much of his time sitting on the bench using his right hand to support his left one or standing with his left hand pinned to his chest while in obvious discomfort. The tape extended from the bottom of his left wrist, around the middle of his hand and wrapped his fingers.

“You want to be out there with your team and you want to help your team,” said Cassius Winston, who also spent time on the bench in the second half after picking up his third foul. “But sometimes the best way for your team is to not be on the floor. And when you can’t do that, it’s definitely tough.”

Ward – who returned to MSU after testing the NBA draft process – entered Sunday averaging 15.4 points and 6.7 rebounds a game for the Spartans.

More Kithier

The loss of Ward likely will mean more minutes for Thomas Kithier.

The 6-8 freshman forward played nearly 10 minutes off the bench Sunday, scoring a layup to punctuate a 13-3 pull-away run in the second half. He also had a steal and three rebounds while helping to hold Ohio State sophomore big man Kaleb Wesson to just four points and four rebounds in the second half.

The 225-pound Kithier gave up 45 pounds to Wesson in the post.

“We got a lot out of Kithier,” Izzo said. “He’ll sleep well tonight. His 10 minutes will be like an hour of work.”

Kithier has played vital minutes at times already in this season for MSU, mostly when foul problems would plague big men Ward, Kenny Goins and Xavier Tillman.

That included a 4-minute stint for Kithier against Maryland, with Ward on the bench, in which Kithier had four points and two rebounds. He then put together six points and five boards in 9 minutes at Iowa, did not play for two games, then set career highs with eight points and 18 minutes against Minnesota while adding three rebounds.

“I think it just really helps having that next-man-up mentality,” Kithier said after Sunday’s game. “Just being ready.”

Goins had with 10 points and 10 rebounds, adding three blocks and two assists. Tillman five points, six rebounds and two steals but also picked up four fouls.

Ward’s injury also could force Izzo to use Marcus Bingham Jr. in a bigger role as well. The 6-10 freshman forward played the final 57 seconds Sunday.

"It has hurt my team that we do not have a rotation," Izzo said. "Nobody deserves any blame for that more than me, some situations that we've been put in with these injuries. Almost mind-boggling."

Henry benched

Along with Ward, Izzo did not start freshman Aaron Henry coming out of halftime.

It was to send a message.

“As far as Aaron,” Izzo said with a long pause, “it was to kind of hold him accountable.”

The 6-6 swingman, who started his ninth game of the season, finished scoreless in 9:48 of court time. Henry grabbed two rebounds and had an assist but also committed two turnovers and missed his only shot. He was coming off an eight-point, five-rebound performance in 28 minutes at Wisconsin on Tuesday.

Contact Chris Solari at csolari@freepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @chrissolari. Read more on the Michigan State Spartans and sign up for our Spartans newsletter.