KU forward Mitch Lightfoot breaks nose, will be held out of contact for a few days

By Matt Tait Jul 21, 2017

Nick Krug

Blue Team forward Mitch Lightfoot comes in for a dunk before a scrimmage on Wednesday, June 7, 2017 at the Horejsi Family Athletics Center.

Kansas forward Mitch Lightfoot will be held out of contact for the next few days after completing surgery for a broken nose, Kansas coach Bill Self said Friday.

Lightfoot, who, according to Self, had been one of the stars of the summer for the Jayhawks, suffered the injury during a recent practice and will be limited to basketball-only related drills until he is cleared to resume contact.

Self said Lightfoot is still expected to play during the team’s upcoming trip to Italy.

“We think so, Self said when asked if Lightfoot would be eligible to play overseas. “But if he plays he’ll have to wear a mask.”

Self said Lightfoot’s injury was the only significant setback the Jayhawks have dealt with this summer.

Kansas will leave for Italy on July 31 and has practiced five times in preparation for the four exhibition games thus far. The five remaining practices allowed by the NCAA will take place Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, with the final session set for July 30.

“They’ve been OK,” Self said of the pre-Italy practices. “We haven’t looked very good, but we’ve only practiced five times.”

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Written By Matt Tait

A native of Colorado, Matt moved to Lawrence in 1988 and has been in town ever since. He graduated from Lawrence High in 1996 and the University of Kansas in 2000 with a degree in Journalism. After covering KU sports for the University Daily Kansan and Rivals.com, Matt joined the World Company (and later Ogden Publications) in 2001 and has held several positions with the paper and KUsports.com in the past 20+ years. He became the Journal-World Sports Editor in 2018. Throughout his career, Matt has won several local and national awards from both the Associated Press Sports Editors and the Kansas Press Association. In 2021, he was named the Kansas Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sports Media Association. Matt lives in Lawrence with his wife, Allison, and two daughters, Kate and Molly. When he's not covering KU sports, he likes to spend his time playing basketball and golf, listening to and writing music and traveling the world with friends and family.