Michigan State's Green: 'Knee will be fine'

If there's one player that Michigan State's basketball team absolutely can't afford to lose, it's senior captain Draymond Green. It didn't look good for Green and the Spartans when he hobbled off the court, missed the final 3:51 of Tuesday night's game at Illinois and was then seen leaving the arena on crutches because of an injured left knee. Green, however, sent a message on Twitter that said his "knee will be fine." The injury will be evaluated further Wednesday. The Spartans went on to lose 42-41, dropping them into a third-place tie with Michigan in the Big Ten, a game behind first-place Ohio State. MSU's next game is Sunday at home against Michigan. Green, who leads the team in scoring (14.9) and rebounding (10.3), took the blame for the lethargic loss at Illinois. In his defense, he had been battling a severe case of the stomach flu in recent days. Green ended up playing only 16 minutes because of the injury and foul trouble. His third personal was a technical foul midway through the first half for reacting to an official's call. Green finished with as many turnovers as points (five each) while making 1 of 6 shots. "Tough loss keyed by me letting my teammates down," Green wrote on Twitter.