The Southern men's basketball team was close to finishing its nonconference schedule with a fresh, healthy lineup, but that changed in the last two weeks.
A rash of injuries have caused the Jaguars to shuffle their lineup, at least in the short term, as they prepare for their first Southwestern Athletic Conference road trip.
Southern (5-8) will play Texas Southern (3-10) in Houston on Saturday with tip off set for 5 p.m. The Jaguars play at Prairie View (1-12) on Monday at 7:30 p.m.
"The last week of nonconference has put us in a tough position," Southern coach Kevin Johnson said. "We've got two guys that we didn't have in either of our last two games, and they're questionable this weekend."
The two players, Michael Jacobs and Tidjiane Dioumassi, are battling back injuries. Jacobs has been Southern's leading scorer averaging 10.7 points while Dioumassi, a preseason all-SWAC selection, has scored at a 9.0 clip.
There are other injuries, as well.
Derrick Tezeno, the team's leading rebounder at 4.3 per game, is recovering from a broken nose. Joe Manning, a top bench contributor, is dealing with a hand injury.
"This has caused us to change the way we play," Johnson said. "Now we have guys in different roles and its a challenge."
On Saturday, the challenge will include a Texas Southern squad that was picked to finish second in the league. Tigers forward Kenny Hunter was tapped as the preseason defensive player of the year and he has grabbed 6.3 rebounds per outing. Kavion McClain is TSU's top scorer (14.8).
Southern split its two games with TSU last season winning 58-51 in Baton Rouge before a 68-56 loss in Houston. Texas Southern outrebounded Southern in both games, but the Jaguars have improved in that area.
Last year, Southern averaged 31.8 rebounds but has pulled down 37.5 per game this season, a number that has the Jaguars second in the SWAC.
"When we're healthy, I think we've improved in a lot of areas," Johnson said. "This team has the ability to score better and rebound better than last year. If you look at our stats, we're top 10 (nationally) in steals and at one time we were number one in bench points."
Bench production will be a key for the Jaguars while they nurse their injuries. So far, 12 players have averaged more than 12 minutes a game. Four have been playing more than 21 minutes, but that group includes Jacobs, Dioumassi and Tezeno.
Southern will need to adjust quickly in order to have a successful road trip.
