One of the tidbits from my visit to Georgetown's lacrosse practice was an update on attackman Brendan Cannon, who suffered a sprained left ankle against Rutgers on Saturday.

Cannon (23 goals, 21 assists) was in a walking boot and has not practiced this week for the Hoyas (9-3), who visit Penn State on Saturday.

"The ankle's doing well," Cannon said. "There's a good chance I'll be able to play on Saturday. I'm just being cautious with it and doing what I can. I won't push it too hard because it's a serious injury to an extent, but I think I should be able to go on Saturday."

If Georgetown was safely in the NCAA tournament field, it would be absurd for Cannon to play when he could rest a week and be ready for the postseason. But unlike most seasons of late, the Hoyas need to beat (or, more precisely, avoid losing to) the struggling Nittany Lions.

If Cannon does play, Georgetown has to hope it can run out to an early lead in much the same way it did last week so they can get him out of there as quickly as possible. And if he doesn't, the Hoyas can only hope to avoid the sort of loss that could potentially end their 11-year NCAA tournament streak.

Since, as coach Dave Urick points out, Cannon has a long history of missing practice with injuries and then playing, I suspect Cannon will indeed give it a go in State College. But it goes without saying the Hoyas would love to get him as much rest as possible heading into the postseason.

--- Patrick Stevens