Jan. 22--CHAMPAIGN -- Illinois is down another man.
The Illini will be without starting guard Aaron Cosby for Wednesday's game against Purdue after tearing his retina in Sunday's game against Indiana.
He underwent laser surgery on Monday and will be out for one or two weeks.
The Illini are already coping without leading scorer Rayvonte Rice, who suffered a hand injury, and point guard Tracy Abrams, who was sidelined in the preseason with a knee injury.
They also expected to have forward Darius Paul this season, but he was suspended as he sat out as a transfer last season and has since transferred with a committment to return next season to Illinois.
Cosby has struggled offensively this season, shooting only 26.4 percent from the field and averaging only seven points per game in Big Ten contests. But he did have a season-high 19 points against Northwestern last week.
Illinois (12-7, 2-4) is looking to bounce back from Sunday's loss to Indiana against the Boilermakers (11-7, 3-2).
Purdue offers a pair of 7-footers that Illinois will have to contend with.
The Boilermakers have won four of the last five games in Champaign.
sryan@tribune.com
Twitter @sryantribune
