Southern Miss basketball guard Neftali Alvarez undergoes foot surgery. Lieb Yat has torn ACL

HATTIESBURG – Southern Miss men’s basketball team is gearing up for the upcoming season, but they are already facing several injury setbacks.

In an exhibition game against Delta State, the Golden Eagles emerged victorious with a score of 101-65. However, they had to play without four key players – Andre Curbelo, Neftali Alvarez, Lieb Yat, and Luke Ladner – all of whom were unavailable due to different injuries.

Among the injured players, Alvarez, a graduate student guard, is particularly notable. He averaged 7.8 points per game last season and is now expected to be out for approximately 10 weeks following foot surgery.

Coach Jay Ladner expressed the team’s disappointment, stating, “He’s not only a valuable player on the court, but also a great leader. Losing him is tough for us.”

Prior to the exhibition game, Alvarez posted a picture on Instagram from his hospital bed, indicating that he would be out for the season with an unspecified injury. Later, he also posted on X (formerly known as Twitter) that he “probably won’t be back this y(ea)r.”

However, Coach Ladner clarified that Alvarez is not expected to miss the entire season, and his return depends on the recovery process.

In addition to Alvarez, the team is also dealing with injuries to Yat, Ladner, and Curbelo. Yat, a 7-foot transfer from Seminole State College, has a torn ACL and will be sidelined for the entire season. Ladner, Coach Ladner’s son, has a back issue that has kept him out for over two months but will start ramping up his activity next week. Curbelo, a transfer from St. John’s, is in the concussion protocol but is on track to return to practice soon.

Moreover, UNLV transfer Victor Iwuakor left Tuesday’s game with an ankle sprain and did not return. He had a promising performance in his unofficial Southern Miss debut before the injury.

The team is hopeful to have Iwuakor back in action soon, with Coach Ladner saying, “I thought he was just hitting his groove out there before he turned his ankle.”

Despite the setbacks, senior forward Victor Hart led the team with 20 points in the exhibition game. Austin Crowley, the Sun Belt’s Preseason Player of the Year, also had an impressive performance with 17 points, seven rebounds, and six assists.

Southern Miss has one more tune-up game, a charity exhibition against Mississippi State, before their regular season opener on November 6 against William Carey.

Sam Sklar is the Southern Miss beat reporter for the Hattiesburg American. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on X @sklarsam_.

This article originally appeared on Hattiesburg American: Southern Miss basketball: Neftali Alvarez undergoes foot surgery