DuSell gets green light for CSU series

LARAMIE -- With just 1:30 remaining on the clock and the game well out of hand, Xavier DuSell laid on the Viejas Arena court, clutching his lower back and in visible pain.

Apparently, it was an errant knee to the sciatic nerve that sent the true freshman to the floor. A trainer assisted him to the bench where he sat in agony as San Diego State salted away a 98-71 victory last Saturday night.

Wyoming head coach Jeff Linder will be the first to tell you his team can't afford another serious injury.

The Cowboys currently have just eight healthy scholarship players available when Border War rival Colorado State visits the Arena-Auditorium for a two-game series, beginning Thursday night at 7 p.m. MST.

DuSell, luckily for them, is one of those guys.

"Everything is all good," Linder said during his weekly press conference. "He's good. He's a tough kid and we're going to need him."

That's an understatement.

With Kenny Foster out for an unknown amount of time with a knee injury, and Eoin Nelson's return (left foot) also very much up in the air, Wyoming has not been able to practice 5-on-5 since the calendar flipped to 2021. COVID-19 quarantines were already limiting practice before the injury bug bit.

Linder says DuSell is one of the Cowboys best defenders on the perimeter. He has also been one of Wyoming's biggest assets on offense, particularly from beyond the arc where he has sank a team-high 23 three-pointers in 10 Mountain West games.

The Scottsdale, Ariz., product has averaged 13.2 points per game over the Cowboys' last six outings.

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