Another Blow for Michigan State: Divine Ugochukwu Out for Season

Tom Izzo announced Friday that starting guard Divine Ugochukwu will miss the remainder of the season with a foot injury.

Ugochukwu pulled himself out early against Minnesota on Wednesday, which is always a suspicious move. Then the announcer said what almost everyone was thinking: “You never like to see someone pull themselves out of a game.” The darkness of that quote lingered for days. As of Friday, Izzo closed the lid on Ugochukwu’s season, confirming he’ll be out the rest of the year.

When he limped to the sideline, it didn’t initially look catastrophic—but again, he took himself out. Not only that, he stopped play in the middle of a Spartans possession. He went straight to the sideline and sat with a trainer who immediately went to work on the foot. Ugochukwu eventually walked under his own power to the locker room. The next time we saw him, the announcer said he was “questionable to return” as he sat on the bench in full sweats—basically assuring viewers that questionable really meant doubtful.

There should be no speculation here on my end. It could be a litany of things. To me, in the moment, it looked like someone dealing with an Achilles issue—but again, that’s just years of watching and playing sports and recognizing how guys react. All we officially know is that it’s a foot injury.

So now the darkness gets darker.

With the Spartans riding a two-game losing streak and the fifth-ranked Fighting Illini on deck tomorrow, this news is yet another snowball in the avalanche engulfing Tom Izzo’s club.

Ugochukwu transferred to Michigan State from Miami and was expected to be the backup point guard. That plan changed quickly when Kur Teng and Trey Fort struggled out of the gate, allowing Ugochukwu to earn the starting spot at shooting guard. In his first start, he erupted for 23 points against Penn State in a Spartan win. From there, he started 12 straight games—up until Wednesday night, when freshman Jordan Scott got the nod instead.

Ugochukwu averaged 5.1 points, 1.5 assists, and 1.6 rebounds per game. He didn’t light up the stat sheet, but his tenacity and team-first style helped create space for the bigs and for Jeremy Fears. He shot an impressive .442 from three-point range, including the game-tying triple against Rutgers with time expiring—a shot that forced overtime and led to Michigan State’s last win.

Now it’s time for Teng and Fort to step up in a major way. Fort answered the call against Minnesota, leading the bench with 12 points and hitting some timely threes. Teng has had his moments too, though unfortunately he’s still best known as the guy who couldn’t guard Tom Izzo’s 99-year-old mother.

Freshman Jordan Scott, who had a career night in his first start at the two, will likely stick in that role, allowing Teng and Fort to come off the bench.

It’s another puzzle piece Izzo will have to make fit. Ugochukwu’s presence will be missed—big time. But as the saying goes, next man up, and for this Michigan State team, that phrase has never meant more.