Indianapolis ? A day after spraining his left ankle, Indiana point guard Tom Coverdale said he hopes to be ready for the Hoosiers’ appearance in the Final Four.

Coverdale was injured Saturday midway through the second half of an 81-69 victory over Kent State in the South Regional championship. He hurt himself when he stepped on the foot of a defender while driving to the basket.

Afterward, while his teammates celebrated their first Final Four appearance since 1992, Coverdale needed help to cut down the net and left the court in a wheelchair.

The Hoosiers play Oklahoma on Saturday in one of the national semifinal games.

“The swelling has gone down a lot. It feels better, but I cannot push off on it yet,” Coverdale said in a statement released Sunday through the sports information department.

“If it improves each day like it did from yesterday to today, I think with some treatment, rehab and maybe a shot (for the pain), I may be able to play. But it is too early to tell right now,” he said.

On Saturday night, Coverdale struggled even to put weight on the ankle. He was helped off the floor by two people, then was carried by three people back to the end of the bench. He spent the final six minutes with his left leg propped on a chair.

Coverdale finished with 14 points, seven assists, three 3-pointers and was picked as the South’s Most Outstanding Player.

In the locker room, however, Coverdale got around with crutches and was wheeled down the hall for treatment.

Teammates called him a quick healer and said they were hopeful he could play Saturday.

“You cannot replace a Tom Coverdale,” backup guard A.J. Moye said Saturday night. “You have to remember, he’s got a week to recover and I think he could recover from a mugging in a week.”

If Coverdale cannot play, it would be a difficult loss for the Hoosiers to overcome.

He is Indiana’s second-leading scorer at 12.2 points per game and also leads the team with 4.9 assists per game.

After Coverdale’s injury Saturday, the Hoosiers were rattled. In a 2:54 span, they committed four turnovers, called a timeout to avoid another and committed three fouls before recovering.

Coverdale’s replacement likely would be Donald Perry  a true freshman who has steadily improved throughout the season.

“Maybe Coverdale’s injuries will turn out to be a blessing because Donald Perry has matured rapidly,” Moye said.

Coverdale originally sprained his left ankle at the end of the first half of Indiana’s opening-round game against Utah.

Trainer Tim Garl, though, said Coverdale’s injury Saturday night was not in the same location as the one he injured against Utah.