Jaland Lowe will not play vs. Michigan State, per report; availability in near-term is 'foggy'

It’s not too surprising to hear, but Kentucky point guard Jaland Lowe will not play in Tuesday night’s Champions Classic showdown against No. 17 Michigan State.

According to Matt Norlander of CBS Sports, head coach Mark Pope told him that Lowe’s injured non-shooting shoulder is not healthy enough to give it a go against the Spartans in Madison Square Garden. On top of that, Lowe’s status moving forward is still up in the air.

“Lowe is out indefinitely with a shoulder (injury); his availability in the near-term remains foggy,” Norlander wrote.

Kentucky and Michigan State will tip off in New York City tonight at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.

The Champions Classic will have injury impacts on both games tonight, as Kentucky will again be without starting point guard Jaland Lowe against Michigan State, Mark Pope told @CBSSports. Lowe is out indefinitely with a shoulder; his availability in the near-term remains foggy.

— Matt Norlander (@MattNorlander) November 18, 2025

Lowe originally injured his right shoulder during the Blue-White Game on Oct. 17. He missed both exhibition games against No. 1 Purdue and Georgetown, then the regular season opener against Nicholls, before returning against Valparaiso and Louisville. But during practice last Thursday, he re-injured the same shoulder and sat out Friday’s win over Eastern Illinois.

“We don’t have anything yet, so we’ll probably have some discussions over the next couple of days about what’s the best thing to do right now,” Pope told reporters after Friday’s game. “That’s probably the point where we are right now. I think we’ve got a bevy of second and third opinions, and so right now it’s going to be more just like the whole group, the whole medical team, and mom and dad and J. Lowe, and me sitting down and having a real conversation about what’s the best thing to do move forward.”

Now five days after the re-injury, it remains to be seen if Lowe will try to tough it and play later this season, or if surgery is on the table. But going off Norlander’s reporting, it certainly doesn’t sound like Lowe is close to getting back on the floor. It took him three weeks from the initial injury before he could suit up and play in games. Kentucky will once again rely heavily on Denzel Aberdeen to run the show in his absence.

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