In a season riddled with injuries, Auburn lost another guard on Saturday in its 83-77 win over Tennessee.
TJ Lang, who has started 11 of the Tigers’ 12 games and played the third-most minutes on the team among guards, was injured in a collision as he and a Tennessee player scrambled for a loose ball with 30 seconds left in the first half.
Lang walked gingerly off the court, holding a towel to what appeared to be an injured nose. He did not return. Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said after the game that Lang showed concussion symptoms and was going through concussion protocol.
The injury is a devastating blow to what was already a damaged backcourt, as Lang joins T.J. Dunans (out three to five weeks with a bruised knee) and Tahj Shamsid-Deen (out indefinitely with a shoulder injury) on the list of infirmed Tigers.
“We’re obviously pretty down in the backcourt as far as numbers are concerned, but other guys stepped up,” Pearl said. “Pat Keim stepped up in a big way, brought us great energy, brought us great effort.”
Keim, who entered the game averaging just over three minutes per game, clocked nine minutes in relief of Lang, recording two assists and a steal.
Jordon Granger played a career-high 33 minutes and posted a solid overall line, scoring 7 points on three of five shooting, grabbing five rebounds and two steals and blocking two shots.
Lang’s first opportunity to return to the court will be Tuesday against South Carolina, but if he is diagnosed with a concussion, he will be required to sit out seven days and could not return until Auburn’s game at Missouri next Saturday.
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