Nov. 19, 2007
ANNAPOLIS, Md. -- Navy junior guard Clif Colbert will likely be out at least eight weeks with a broken right wrist suffered against Texas-San Antonio on Saturday night. The loss is a big blow for the Navy men's basketball program as the 6-4, 211-pound guard had come off the bench in all four games to rank seventh on the team in scoring, averaging 6.0 points per game.
"This is a big blow for us and I feel bad for Clif," said Navy head coach Billy Lange. "He had argubly been one of our top players on the team early on, and had been playing very well. Clif does a lot of things well and can really fill up the statsheet. Injuries are a part of the game, and hopefully we can have someone step up and play well in his absence."
Colbert, who hails from Grand Prairie, Texas, averaged 14.5 minutes per game through the first four games, but gave the Mids a lift whenever he was in the game. He is averaging 6.0 ppg, 2.5 spg, 2.0 rpg and 1.0 apg, while shooting 55.6 percent (10-of-18) from the field and 66.7 percent (4-of-6) from the free throw line. In his first action in his home state of Texas since graduating from Grand Prairie High School in 2005, Colbert scored 14 points with four rebounds, two steals, one assist and one block in 25 minutes during Saturday's loss to Texas-San Antonio. He landed on his right wrist, his shooting hand, after being undercut on a layup attempt with 16:32 to play in the game. He continued to play, scoring 12 of his 14 points after breaking the wrist.
He is the Patriot League leader in steals, averaging 2.5 steals per game, despite playing just 14.5 minutes per contest.
Colbert has been known for strong performances in his first three years at Navy. Earlier this year, he scored four points with three assists and three steals in just nine minutes against Longwood. He followed with two points and three rebounds against Drexel in nine minutes, and then tallied four points with four steals in just 14 minutes against Robert Morris. Last year, he scored eight points with five steals in 14 minutes against Bucknell, then added three points and seven rebounds in 13 minutes against Lafayette.
As a freshman in his first career start, he scored a career-high 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting with six rebounds against NCAA Tournament participant Penn. He would score in double figures five times as a freshman and was named Patriot League Rookie of the Week twice.
Navy will return to Alumni Hall on Tuesday night, when it hosts Canisius at 7:00 pm. For ticket information, call 1-800-US4-NAVY.
# GO NAVY #
