Duke starting guard Caleb Foster will return from injury when the top-seeded Blue Devils face No. 5 St. John’s on Friday, March 27 in the Sweet 16 of the men’s NCAA Tournament.
Foster had missed the entire ACC tournament – won by the Blue Devils – and first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament after suffering a foot fracture in the team’s regular-season finale against North Carolina on March 7.
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He’s been seen at postseason games with his foot in a boot and riding on a one-legged scooter. Foster did participate in the Duke’s shoot-around Thursday, March 26 during the session that was open to media.
There was optimism Foster could return at some point in the postseason.
“He had a good day of practice (Wednesday), doing a little bit,” Duke coach Jon Scheyer said to media on March 26. “Again, it’s not like there’s a lot of practice time, but we have to make sure he’s in position before the game, more of a game-time decision.
“He’s going to give it everything he has to go …”
The 6-foot-5 junior has started 30 of 31 games and is averaging 8.5 points per game and leads all regulars shooting 40.2% from the 3-point line.
Cayden Boozer has stepped into Foster’s position in the starting lineup for the past five games. The freshman has averaged 13.8 points in those games. And more impressively, he has totaled 44 points, 14 assists and just four turnovers as Duke defeated Virginia in the ACC tournament title game and Siena and TCU in the NCAA Tournament.
No announcement was made about Foster’s availability for Sunday’s Elite Eight game should the Blue Devils advance.
Duke will have center Patrick Ngongba II available, as well. The sophomore was also injured in the North Carolina season-finale and returned for the team’s second-round game against TCU. He scored 4 points and had 4 rebounds in 13 minutes.
Is Caleb Foster playing today?
Foster will return from injury for the first time since March 8 after fracturing his foot in the regular season finale against North Carolina, according to the NCAA’s player availability report.
It’ll be a huge boost for the Blue Devils, getting back an experienced guard. True freshman Cayden Boozer has played well in Foster’s absence, though, and may have earned more minutes in the meantime.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Caleb Foster injury update: Duke guard off injury report vs St. John’s
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