Mizzou’s Michael Porter Jr. will miss second straight game because of injury

Michael Porter Jr. will not play for the Missouri Tigers on Thursday night when they face Utah. This will be the second straight game the star freshman will miss because of what the team has only described as a left leg injury.

Porter did not travel here with the Tigers.

“His status will be reevaluated next week,” a department spokesperson wrote in a text message. “Further updates will not be available until that time.”

On Monday, in a game against Wagner that Porter did not play in, he stayed in the locker room rather than sit on the bench because it felt better on his injury, according to the team.

Porter, one of the country’s top recruits in the 2017 class and a contender to be the No. 1 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft, came out of Mizzou’s season opener against Iowa State on Friday just two minutes into the game. Coach Cuonzo Martin said Porter told him before the Iowa State game that he was “not feeling right.” Porter only started the game, Martin said, because his name was already listed in the scorer’s book as a starter.

After Missouri’s win over Wagner on Monday, Martin said Porter was “day to day.”

“I’m sure as you can imagine, any player would be upset that they don’t get to play in their first year at college,” freshman forward Jontay Porter, Michael’s younger brother, said after the Wagner game. “But he’s handling it well. He’s rehabbing. He’s day to day right now. Hopefully he’ll be ready the next game, but we’ll see. There’s no telling.”

Neither Martin nor Jontay Porter said whether Porter Jr. had sought a medical opinion from someone other than the team doctor.

“The truth of the matter is I’m not a doctor,” Martin said after MU’s game against Wagner. “I can’t give you more than that. I don’t want to give you more. It’s not my job to give.

“So out of respect for Mike, his family, I think the best thing is it’s day to day. If I had more, I’d give you more.”

With Porter Jr. out against Utah, junior Kevin Puryear should start in his place.

After Missouri plays Utah on Thursday, the Tigers will face Emporia State on Monday. They will then travel to Orlando, Fla., for the AdvoCare Invitational, an eight-team tournament.

“Everything’s fine,” Michael and Jontay’s mother, Lisa Porter, told The Star on Wednesday. “Everything’s going to be fine. That’s all I’m going to say right now.”

This story was originally published November 16, 2017 at 10:17 AM with the headline "Mizzou’s Michael Porter Jr. will miss second straight game because of injury."