Kansas men’s basketball guard Melvin Council Jr. broke his right foot in practice on Monday, head coach Bill Self announced in a statement.
“Melvin broke the fifth metatarsal in his foot during Monday’s practice and will have surgery in the next couple of days,” Self said. “We expect a full recovery and we’re hopeful he will return around the start of the conference season.”
Big 12 Conference play begins on Jan. 2 when KU hosts West Virginia.
Through two games of his fourth season of Division I basketball and sixth overall, Council had averaged 8.0 points, 5.0 assists and 3.5 rebounds in 21 minutes per game. The guard from Rochester, New York, is eligible this season under an injunction against the NCAA obtained in Monroe County, New York, court; he argued that his time spent in junior college should not count against his Division I eligibility.
Last season, Council was named Big 12 newcomer of the year and averaged 12.7 points and 5.1 assists as one of the focal points of KU’s offense. A fan favorite, he previously played at Monroe College, Wagner and St. Bonaventure.
In his absence — beginning on Tuesday when KU takes on Kentucky at the Champions Classic in Chicago at 8:30 p.m. — sophomore guard Leroy Blyden Jr., a transfer from Toledo, will likely take on greater responsibility in the backcourt alongside freshman Taylen Kinney.
Blyden, who was the MAC freshman of the year in his lone season with the Rockets, has averaged 10.5 points off the bench in his two games as a Jayhawk.
In Council’s absence, KU won’t have many other options to handle the ball outside of Blyden and Kinney. Top-ranked freshman Tyran Stokes will likely take on more responsibilities in that realm while the Jayhawks await Council’s return.
