Photo By Drew Garrison/Tennessee Athletics

Tennessee forward JP Estrella exited the Vols’ matchup against Rice with 1:26 remaining in the first half with a left leg injury on Monday night. Estrella is out for the remainder of the game according to a UT spokesperson.

Estrella was bending down to grab a loose ball when a Rice player made an attempt to grab the basketball and pushed Estrella’s left leg back. The 6-foot-11 big man immediately grabbed his left leg and was in clear pain.

The sophomore big man limped off the floor with the help of two Tennessee staffers and went straight up the tunnel instead of going to the Vols’ bench.

Estrella has been a breakout star for Tennessee early this season, averaging 17.3 points, 8.7 rebounds and 1.3 assists through the Vols’ first three games of the season. The redshirt sophomore had recorded double-doubles in each of Tennessee’s last two games.

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“I don’t think we’re surprised because we told him, from the day that we recruited him, what we thought he could be,” Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes said of Estrella following the North Florida game. “And we do think, as a staff, the last two weeks, his mindset has changed. I mean, I think missing a year. We knew that would take a little bit of time, but he’s gotten so much better with his focus in practice.”

Injuries have plagued Estrella’s career to this point with the former blue-chip recruit missing nearly the entirety of the 2024-25 season after undergoing foot surgery in late November.

Estrella rehabbed the injury for the entirety of the season and much of the offseason but still made major improvements to his game and has looked like an interior scoring threat that Tennessee has not had since Grant Williams.

The Vols are already dealing with one injury this season as shooting guard Bishop Boswell missed the Rice game due to a left leg injury.

Stay tuned to Rocky Top Insider to see what Rick Barnes says about Estrella’s injury following the game.