Tennessee guard Jahmai Mashack played just four minutes in the second half of the Vols’ 67-52 win over Norfolk State on Tuesday afternoon. Following the game, Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said Mashack is battling a finger injury and that his minutes were reduced because he didn’t think he looked comfortable.
Meeting with the media on Friday morning, Mashack discussed the injury that he originally suffered during the Vols’ win over MTSU.
“Dove on the floor kind of came down on it and kind of saw my pinky kind of— not the way it was supposed to look,” Mashack said. “And so I was in shock. Not really feeling the pain, but just more in shock. But there was no way I wasn’t going to finish the game, so I just went back in, kind of put it back together, I guess, and then came right back out to finish the game.”
Mashack didn’t suffer any long term injury to his left pinky finger and is not going to miss any time with the injury. However, the senior guard won’t be 100% healthy as the Vols prepare to open SEC play against Arkansas on Saturday afternoon.
More From RTI: Everything Rick Barnes Said To Preview Tennessee’s SEC Opener At Arkansas
“I’m just ready to go out there and play,” Mashack said. “I’m going to do whatever I can to rehab it, make sure it’s starting to feel better every day. That’s the goal for me. And you know, just trying to be out there playing the same, with the same mindset, like it’s not even hurt, but nothing’s going to keep me off the court, you know? I think my teammates know that. My coaches know that. So going to do everything I can to try and be as close to 100%.”
The senior guard admitted that the injury is frustrating, particularly the timing of it, and that it likely is “going to take a minute” before it is fully healed. The good news is that the injury impacts his off hand and should not affect his ability to shoot the ball.
Mashack is averaging six points, four rebounds and 2.4 steals in 29.2 minutes per game this season. But Mashack’s impact goes far beyond the stat sheet. He’s one of the best perimeter defenders in the entire country and one of the most impactful cogs in Tennessee’s elite defense.
He’ll have a challenging task on Saturday as Tennessee opens SEC play against an Arkansas team with a pair of stout scorers. Mashack will likely spend time on both point guard Boogie Fland and forward Adou Thiero.
Tipoff between Tennessee and Arkansas is at 1 p.m. ET on Saturday afternoon in Knoxville. Karl Ravech and Jimmy Dykes are on the call for ESPN.
