Indiana’s Juwan Morgan Cleared to Play

Just a day or so before the the Indiana Hoosiers are scheduled to tip off the exhibition part of their schedule against Hope College tonight, Tom Crean and staff learned that sophomore forward Juwan Morgan has been cleared to play.

Morgan, a 6-foot-8-inch Missouri prospect, had his rookie campaign in Bloomington plagued by a recurring left shoulder injury. While Morgan did play in 30 games, averaging 9 minutes, 2.4 points, and 2.1 rebounds, the lasting image from his first season was one of him walking off the floor on multiple occasions grabbing at his left arm, his shoulder no longer in place. This included leaving the Hoosiers’ win over arch-rival Kentucky in a second round game of the NCAA Tournament this past March.

The injury apparently was a continuous problem for Morgan dating back to when he first suffered the injury in high school. Morgan underwent surgery this past May.

Morgan should see an increased role this season as part of the sensational sophomore class that the Hoosiers boast. Morgan showed signs of promise shooting over 50-percent from both the floor and beyond the arc last season in his limited playing time. In a February win over Nebraska, Morgan scored a career-high 12 points and also pulled down a career-high 5 rebounds.

In other injury news for the Hoosiers, junior college transfer Freddie McSwain appears to be about a week away from returning to the floor.

Good news is that it appears Indiana should be at full strength (sans Collin Hartman, whose timetable for return following knee surgery is unknown) for the Armed Forces Classic showdown with the No.3 Kansas to open up the the regular season on Nov. 11.