OSU’s Anderson out indefinitely, needs wrist surgery
STILLWATER — Oklahoma State senior guard Avery Anderson III’s lingering wrist injury will cost him even more time.
Cowboys coach Mike Boynton announced Monday that Anderson will undergo surgery on his left wrist and will be out indefinitely.
Surgery is scheduled for Wednesday. A better timetable will be set afterward.
“You deal with different bumps in the road throughout a season,” Boynton said. “Obviously, it’s another one for us. He’s really, really important to our team and has been for four years.
“He’s disappointed. But we’re encouraged that the surgery is going to be something that’s — I don’t know if there’s a such thing as a minor surgery; surgery is surgery — but it’s not a knee. It’s his off hand and something he’s going to be able to recover from and be able to play again, most importantly.”
The Cowboys have won five of their past six games and three straight to climb back into the NCAA Tournament picture. OSU is also back at .500 in Big 12 play entering Wednesday’s game against Texas Tech.
OSU also dealt with an ankle injury to star center Moussa Cisse last month. But this is different. Anderson missed Saturday’s upset of 15th-ranked TCU with the injury, which has lingered since he fell on his wrist on Jan. 7 against Texas. Anderson was limited in the loss at Kansas State a few days later. He re-aggravated the injury in last week’s Bedlam win during a fall.
In Anderson’s absence Saturday, Texas State transfer Caleb Asberry made his first start for the Cowboys and scored 19 points.
Anderson has averaged 11.1 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.4 assists this season. He’s also the Cowboys’ best on-ball defender.
Replacing him will be tough.
The Cowboys will likely lean more on John-Michael Wright and Bryce Thompson for ball-handling duties. Chris Harris Jr. has also improved in that area off the bench.
Still, none are Anderson.
“We don’t have anyone like Avery,” Boynton said. “Nobody’s as dynamic with the ball. Nobody has the fasttwitch athleticism that he has. But they all have different skills that they can bring to the table that can all be beneficial.”