Will BYU's leading scorer, Noah Hartsock, play against Gonzaga on Thursday when the Zags play host to the Cougars at The Kennel?
That will be the big question in the next two days, after BYU coach Dave Rose said after Tuesday's practice that Hartsock will be a "game-time decision."
Hartsock did not practice Tuesday, but wore a sleeve-like brace on his left knee and did take some free throws and other shots. He did not scrimmage at all.
"Noah had an MRI yesterday. He's got some real soreness in that knee, but there is no structural damage, so we will just go from there. Hopefully he improves every day. He didn't practice today.
It was really sore. Not a lot of swelling in there, but we dodged a bullet as far as the MRI is concerned, so hopefully we can get him back as soon as possible."
Asked point-blank if Hartsock will play Thursday, Rose said: "There's a chance. But I think, I mean, he is listed, as far as the trainer is concerned, as day-to-day. My hope is that we can get him on the floor this weekend, sometime."
Saturday, the Cougars host Portland at the Marriott Center in the final home games for Hartsock and fellow senior Charles Abouo.
"There are so many players that are really valuable. You take a piece out, then you have to find a way to kind of make up for that. But Noah's value to this group has been so consistent. It seems like he has had a remarkable season as far as his ability to kind of step up and perform every night and do whatever we have needed, if it is a defensive stop, if it is an offensive score late in the game, if it is a big free throw.
He's been able to do that for us.
We need him. We need him in there, and hopefully we can get him back as soon as possible," Rose said of Hartsock.

How will the rotation go if Hartsock cant' play?
"Nate [Austin] and Josh [Sharp] would be the guys we will lean on first. There's a possibility that we might have Stephen [Rogers] back. Stephen practiced today a little bit. We will see how he responds tomorrow.
Brock [Zylstra] has sort of played that spot for us in certain minutes.
So our game plan will be adjusted depending on if he can play or not," Rose said.

The coach said if anyone can play with a bad knee, it is Hartsock.
"Where Noah is one of those guys where he is not a real high-flyer. So he can play on an ankle or a knee if it is playable. I mean, he will play if he can. I do know that. He's a tough guy. And he can be really effective, because he doesn't really depend on the real .... He' s more of a real skilled. He shot the ball out here today and moved around, but he didn't move around real well," he said.

There was some good news Tuesday, however.
Point guard Matt Carlino practiced and looked good after wearing a knee brace Saturday vs. Santa Clara.
"Matt was good. Matt had an MRI, and the structure of his knee is good. He is in a little bit of pain, but not nearly as sore as Noah. And he made it through the whole practice today, so that's a good sign."