Ankle sprain keeps Rutgers’ Harper out vs. U-M

Rutgers star freshman Dylan Harper is out for Saturday’s game against Michigan, per the Big Ten injury report.

Harper suffered a sprained ankle against Penn State on Jan. 20 and aggravated it in the following game against Michigan State. He sat out Wednesday’s loss to Northwestern, after which coach Steve Pikiell said Harper was dealing with a high ankle sprain.

The New Jersey native missed a game and was hampered in others earlier this season with the flu.

Despite the setbacks, Harper has been one of the elite freshmen in college basketball, averaging 18.6 points, 4.8 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. In back-to-back games in late November, he went for 36 points against Notre Dame and 37 points against Alabama.

The 6-foot-6 guard is No. 2 in ESPN’s NBA draft rankings.

Without Harper against Northwestern, fellow freshman star Ace Bailey — the No. 3 prospect in ESPN’s draft rankings — went for 37 points on 13-for-20 shooting.

Rutgers (11-10, 4-6 Big Ten) hosts Michigan (15-5, 7-2) at 3:30 p.m. ET.