SEATTLE, Wash. “”mdash; Sophomore center Alfred Aboya sustained a left knee injury during the first half of Thursday’s game versus Washington State, but is likely to play in Saturday’s game against Washington, coach Ben Howland announced Friday.
Aboya, who had eight points and four rebounds against the Cougars, sustained the injury with 11:59 left in the first half when he had a collision with Cougars sophomore center Aron Baynes.
Aboya had an MRI taken at the University of Washington Sports Medicine Clinic at 3 p.m. Friday and the results came out negative.
“We are going to err on the side of caution,” Howland said. “There is minimal swelling, but there is still a strain, so we will see how things go (Saturday).”
Howland was notified of the injury after Thursday’s game, and he said Aboya had minimal swelling on the flight from Spokane, Wash., to Seattle.
Aboya already had surgery on his left knee prior to last season, and the Bruins concluded Friday that no new structural damage appears to have been done to the knee.
The news is extremely positive for the Bruins with Aboya averaging 8 points and 5 rebounds in his last three games and being the Bruins’ second-leading rebounder in conference play.
“He is a big factor for us,” Howland said. “He is such a physical presence, and he flat-out wants the ball more than the other players.
“For our long-term goals, I hope there is nothing serious (with his injury).”
If Aboya does not play, Howland said Aboya’s minutes would go to seldom-used freshman James Keefe and sophomore Ryan Wright.
Wright only played 42 seconds during Thursday’s game and was immediately taken out, while Keefe did not make an appearance.
“We will need those guys, because they are an important part of our team,” Howland said. “I told them all along that they have to beat out the players above them (on the depth chart) to get minutes, and they may get that opportunity sooner than I expected.”
HUSKIES UP NEXT: With the Pac-10 title already secured and the No. 2 Bruins (16-3, 15-2 Pac-10) almost assured of a No. 1 seed, Howland is still convinced of the importance of Saturday’s game against the Huskies (17-12, 7-10).
“It’s all about momentum,” Howland said. “We don’t want to lose at this time of the year; we don’t want to lose anytime, period.
“We still are playing for NCAA seeding, and we want to secure one of the top No. 1 seeds.”
The Huskies are 16-2 at home this season, and despite their sub-.500 Pac-10 record, they are still a very difficult team to play at the Bank of America Arena.
The Huskies, in fact, have already beaten ranked teams USC, Stanford, Oregon and Louisiana State at home this season.
“Washington is a really, really good home team,” Howland said. “They play in a crack of a box that fits 10,000 people, and they have great fan support.”
“That place gets really loud.”
The Huskies, as of late, have been feeding off of junior guard Ryan Appleby and sophomore forward John Brockman.
Appleby has had 10 3-pointers, including five against USC on Thursday, in his last two games, while Brockman has significantly improved from his freshman year, averaging 13.9 points per game.
“Brockman is a very physical player that is a tough matchup for us,” Howland said. “With him, and (freshman center Spencer) Hawes, they are one of the most dangerous teams in the Pac-10.”
But despite their performances, the Bruins shouldn’t be too worried. The Bruins and Huskies met earlier this season, with the Bruins blowing away the Huskies 94-76 at home.
AROUND THE PAC-10: Coach Howland said Friday he is firmly convinced six Pac-10 teams are a lock to make the NCAA Tournament, including lower-ranked RPI teams USC and Stanford.
“USC is a No. 5 seed right now in my mind,” Howland said. “If you look at the teams on the bubble in the other major conferences, our teams in the Pac-10 have much better profiles than them.”
Howland also said that if he had to choose someone for the Pac-10 Player of the Year, it would be Bruin junior guard Arron Afflalo or sophomore point guard Darren Collison.
“I always skew my votes toward the team that wins,” Howland said. “Unless a guy is absolutely playing at a higher level than everyone else, the person should come from the top team.”
DRIBBLERS: Junior center Lorenzo Mata had an MRI on his sprained left thumb Friday, but the results were negative. Mata is expected to start Saturday. Former Cougars coach Dick Bennett visited the Bruins during their shoot-around prior to Thursday’s game. If the Bruins win on Saturday, they would set the all-time mark for victories in a regular season with 27. The Bruins had previously won 26 times in a regular season multiple times, the most recent being the 1994-1995 season.