Men's basketball notebook: 11/29

Head coach Craig Robinson confirmed Wednesday that redshirt freshman Daniel Gomis will have surgery on his left leg on Dec. 11 and will miss the entire 2012-13 season.

Gomis, a 6-foot-10 center out of Oak Hill Academy, has not played a game since arriving at Oregon State University last year. He broke his leg in his native Senegal in the summer of 2011, and sat out all of last season.

He practiced off and on prior to OSU’s first game this season, but re-injured his leg roughly a month ago and hasn’t practiced since.

The news that Gomis will need another surgery did not come as a surprise to his teammates.

“I think we kind of figured he was going to sit out [this season] because he hasn’t been playing or practicing,” said senior forward Joe Burton.

The rod that was inserted into Gomis’ left leg during his first surgery will be removed during this surgery, according to an OSU spokesperson.

“We’ll see how he does after that,” Robinson said.

The news comes one week after it was announced that senior center Angus Brandt would miss the remainder of the season after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in a game versus Purdue on Nov. 16, leaving the Beavers with just one healthy scholarship player taller than 6-foot-9: 6-foot-10 sophomore forward Eric Moreland.

“It’s kind of a bummer because when Angus was healthy it was fine that Gomis was going to sit out, because we had two centers, but now that he’s hurt, it’s just like a big whoopsie,” Burton said. “It’s just how it is; it’s life.”

Gomis will have three years of eligibility remaining when he returns next season. Brandt is expected to receive a medical redshirt and return next season.

“I’m glad [Gomis] is going to get it fixed, and I’m glad everyone’s going to come back healthy,” said Burton, the lone player the Beavers expect to lose after this season. “It should help them next year.”

Other injury news:

Brandt has not had surgery on his ACL. He’s expected to have surgery sometime shortly after the academic term ends next week.

Freshman forward Olaf Schaftenaar was bothered by a bad back last week, but played Sunday against Montana State and has been a full participant in practice this week.

Freshman forward Jarmal Reid twisted an ankle during Sunday’s game and played only seven minutes because of it, but practiced fully Tuesday and Wednesday and is expected to play Friday against Kansas.

“I can’t even tell which ankle it is,” Robinson said. “It’s so nice to have a guy like that, because he really twisted it and he’s been fine since [Tuesday].”

Sophomore guard Ahmad Starks, who has gone just 7-for-30 from the field since averaging 25.5 points over the Beavers’ first two games, said he’s been battling a sore knee.

“I was battling a knee injury, my knee has been killing me the past two weeks, it was a little better during Sunday’s game, but now I’m finally getting back in the groove of things,” Starks said. “In the New Mexico State game [on Nov. 11], I got kneed in my knee like three times. It was swollen up, and in Madison Square Garden it was still swollen and bothered me a little bit, but right now I’m good.”

Starting five:

Robinson said Wednesday that Reid would get his second start of the season on Friday. Junior forward Devon Collier, OSU’s second leading scorer, will continue to come off the bench.

Robinson dismissed the notion that the Beavers need to put their best lineup on the court to start the game against a national powerhouse like Kansas.

“I don’t think like that with regard to the starting five,” Robinson said. “The first four minutes of the game, anything can happen, so I have always had a guy coming off the bench who could jump start us. You think back to Calvin Haynes [in 2010-11], Lathen Wallace [in 2009-10], Roberto Nelson [last year] and now Devon. That’s what I believe in.

“Some guys don’t think that way, but I always like having that extra bullet in your holster in case you get off to a slow start and need a little bit of a jolt from somebody off the bench.”

Around the Pac-12:

It was announced Wednesday that Josh Smith, UCLA’s 6-foot-10, 305-pound junior center, has left the program.

Smith, a force to be reckoned with inside, averaged 11.7 points and 6.7 rebounds in three career games against the Beavers.

The news reached Robinson when he met with the media at the end of Wednesday’s practice, and he announced it to his players who were still shooting around on the court. Reactions appeared to be mixed.

Starks said he was disappointed that Smith left the Bruins, and said it worked against OSU. Starks said he loved to pick on Smith in pick-and-roll situations.

The Bruins have been the Pac-12’s biggest disappointment thus far, having dropped out of the national rankings after beginning the year ranked No. 13.

The Pac-12 is 48-18 so far during nonconference play, not counting the seven games involving Pac-12 teams that were played last night. Arizona is ranked ninth in this week’s Associated Press Poll, while Colorado is ranked 19th. UCLA, Oregon and California all received votes.