Arizona’s Dylan Smith to play in Pac-12 Tournament; Max Hazzard’s status unclear

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Smith may or may not wear a mask to protect his broken nose

Despite breaking his nose in Saturday’s loss to Washington, Arizona Wildcats guard Dylan Smith will play in the Pac-12 Tournament this week, head coach Sean Miller said Tuesday before the team left for Las Vegas.

“Dylan’s doing well, I’ll put him in the same category as Stone Gettings,” Miller said. “There’s not a lot of athletes in any sport that can overcome a concussion, a facial fracture like Stone had. And Dylan, he broke his nose, took a hard shot, and played a great second half, hasn’t missed anything, hasn’t missed practice. And I’m sure he’s really, really sore, but we expect him to play.”

Smith has been fitted for a mask and has worn it in practice, but it is unclear if he will sport it during Wednesday’s Pac-12 opener vs. Washington.

“But he’s certainly going to play,” Miller said.

Masked @ynbm31 pic.twitter.com/Ds1oJUg1DX

— C.J. Holmes (@CjHolmes22) March 9, 2020

Smith scored 18 of his 19 points against the Huskies after breaking his nose, swishing a career-high six 3s in the loss, one of the reasons the Wildcats only lost by six despite trailing by as many as 17 in the second half.

Miller called it a “real testament to Dylan as an athlete.”

“All these guys have to be able to play through certain things, but at the end, you really have to listen to them,” he said. “And for him to overcome a broken nose like he has, it’s remarkable.”

Miller said senior center Chase Jeter will return from his two-game suspension on Wednesday but added that Max Hazzard’s status has not changed. The senior guard has missed the last two games for personal reasons.

“I don’t have an update or further comment on that,” Miller said.

Arizona has been missing at least one player in four straight games.

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