C.J. McCollum injury: Lehigh guard out 8-10 weeks with broken foot

Guard C.J. McCollum will miss the next 8-10 weeks of play after suffering a broken fifth metatarsal bone in his left foot, ESPN's Andy Katz reports. The Lehigh Mountain Hawks' star and contender for the nation's scoring title was initially expected to be out five or six weeks, but a text from Lehigh coach Brett Reed to Katz confirmed that it'd be much longer.

The senior is widely expected to be a first-round pick in the 2013 NBA Draft -- Draft Express has McCollum going 12th overall in their mock -- and Reed told USA Today Sports that the team won't rush into bringing their preseason All-American back too soon.

"We are going to make sure C.J. is fully recovered and will place the highest priority on quality of care and be certain the injury has healed properly before full activity is resumed," Reed said.

McCollum injured himself Saturday in Lehigh's 59-55 loss to the VCU Rams. His four points dropped his average to 23.9 points per game, which is second in the nation behind Virginia Tech's Erick Green.

The loss is a huge hit to the Mountain Hawks (9-4) as they open Patriot League play Jan. 12 against Holy Cross. McCollum will likely miss all of the Patriot League schedule, but he could return in two months for the league tournament.