Parker Jackson-Cartwright misses practice, Pac-12 Media Day with thigh contusion

Sean Miller was worried about the injury at first, but now Jackson-Cartwright is “full-go”

One thing the Arizona Wildcats need to do to live up to the lofty expectations placed on them this season is stay healthy.

So far, they’re not doing a great job of that.

Kory Jones is lost for the season with a torn ACL, Rawle Alkins is out 2-3 months with a broken foot, and now Parker Jackson-Cartwright has missed practice (and Thursday’s Pac-12 Media Day) because of a thigh contusion.

The good news, however, is that Jackson-Cartwright’s injury is far less severe than the other two, and he has returned after missing two days of practice.

“We worried about it at the beginning because he got hit fairly hard,” head coach Sean Miller said Thursday at Pac-12 Media Day. “He might have been on the schedule to come here, but that's a big reason why he didn't — so he could take care of that. But he practiced two days ago which was our last practice, and he's full-go moving forward.”

Jackson-Cartwright is coming off his best season as a Wildcat, tallying 5.9 points and 4.1 assists per game, while shooting 42.3 percent from 3 and compiling a 3.1 assist-to-turnover ratio as a junior.

All four of those figures are career-highs.

Still, Jackson-Cartwright missed nine games with a high ankle sprain last season, and missed a few games as a freshman in 2014-15 due to a concussion.

His health is especially key for the Wildcats this season, being the only player on the roster who’s played point guard at the collegiate level.

Freshmen Alex Barcello and Emmanuel Akot, and maybe even Allonzo Trier at times, are expected to back him up.

So while Jackson-Cartwright’s latest injury is behind him, hopefully for Arizona it’s not a sign of things to come in the senior’s final season in Tucson.

---

Follow Ryan Kelapire on Twitter at @RKelapire

from Arizona Desert Swarm - All Posts http://ift.tt/2yjpAbY
via IFTTT