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Illinois basketball: Ayo Dosunmu suffers broken nose on dirty hit from Michigan State (Video)

By Steven Kubitza

CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 29: Ayo Dosunmu #11 of the Illinois Fighting Illini is seen during the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes at State Farm Center on January 29, 2021 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images)
CHAMPAIGN, IL - JANUARY 29: Ayo Dosunmu #11 of the Illinois Fighting Illini is seen during the game against the Iowa Hawkeyes at State Farm Center on January 29, 2021 in Champaign, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Hickey/Getty Images) /
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Illinois basketball star Ayo Dosunmu is out indefinitely with a broken nose that was suffered on a dirty play against Michigan State.

The Illinois Fighting Illini are ranked No. 5 in the nation this week and are near the top of a dominant Big Ten Conference this season. A huge reason for the team’s success this year is the play of Ayo Dosunmu, a Player of the Year candidate.

Dosunmu is averaging 21 points per game along with over six rebounds and five assists per game. He rarely sits on the bench during any game and could become a national star with a big performance in the NCAA Tournament.

The only problem is he is out indefinitely with a broken nose. He suffered the brutal injury Tuesday night in a loss to Michigan State.

Illinois basketball without Ayo Dosunmu after dirty hit against Michigan State

Mady Sissoko was the Spartans player who gave Dosunmu the shot to the face.

This was not a “basketball play” at all and was tough to watch. He made contact with Dosunmu’s face and followed through to get himself ejected from the game.

The most important concern now is that Dosunmu is not dealing with an injury that is going to require surgery or anything major like that. It is a shame to see him go down because of a dirty hit.

The Illini finish the regular season on March 6 against Ohio State. That is just over one week away. A safe option would be to hold him out until the start of the NCAA Tournament. That is if he is medically cleared to play by then.

This was a scary play to watch and leaves the Illini without a star player to finish the season. The hope now is that he can return and help finish this run by a program that has not been to the Tournament since 2013.

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