This holiday season won’t be so cheery for fans of the Houston Cougars. News broke late Friday night that the Houston basketball leading scorer, Marcus Sasser, will miss the remainder of the season with a toe injury. There is no doubt that the loss of their leader will seriously hamper Houston’s chances of making another deep run in the NCAA tournament. The only question: by how much?
Marcus Sasser Out for Season | Houston Basketball News
Marcus Sasser’s toe injury has been no secret for the Houston Cougars. Sasser missed a game earlier this season against Louisiana. There was a question as to how severe the injury was, however, as he logged 31 and 36 minutes in back-to-back games against Oklahoma State and Texas State this past week.
Sasser has been the best player in the AAC so far this season, averaging over 17 points, two rebounds and two assists per game. He was also shooting over 43 percent from the floor and from deep. Unfortunately for Houston, they will miss his defensive impact as well.
Houston prides itself on defense, and nobody embodies that more than Marcus Sasser. Through 12 games this season, Sasser has averaged over two steals per game. His quickness allows him to stay in front of anyone who he’s asked to guard, and he is a pest to anybody handling the ball. With such an explosive and effective two-way player lost for the season, it’ll be interesting to see how the Cougars handle it.
Cougars Plagued by Injuries
Unfortunately for Houston, this isn’t the first major injury this season. Just days ago, Houston announced that Tramon Mark would also miss the rest of the season due to recent shoulder surgery. Mark was another big loss, as he averaged over 10 points over seven games. With the loss of Sasser, the question becomes who will step up for Houston. With Mark out for the season as well, that puts an even heavier burden on the rest of the team to step up.
Houston has the talent and plenty of capable players to fill the void left by Sasser and Mark. A lot will be asked of Kyler Edwards and Fabian White Jr., among others, to keep their season and aspirations alive. The big question is if the loss of Sasser will be just too much to handle. With Memphis and Cincinnati starting to hit their stride, do the Cougars still hold staying power in a competitive AAC?
