Forward Michael Gbinije sat out the second half of Syracuse’s (6-3) 71-69 victory over Louisiana Tech on Sunday due to a tightened back, head coach Jim Boeheim said after the game.

All Gbinije said to a reporter before leaving the locker room after Boeheim’s press conference was that he injured his back.

The junior connected on a pull-up jumper from the elbow with 6:58 left in the first half for his only two points in 14 minutes. He added two assists and a pair of rebounds.

In his absence, forward Tyler Roberson played the entire second half and fellow sophomore forward B.J. Johnson logged 14 second-half minutes after just eight in the first.

Although it’s unclear if Gbinije will be available for the Orange’s game at No. 7 Villanova on Saturday, SU forward Rakeem Christmas said the injury is “probably a small thing.”

“It’s always a pleasure to have Mike going out there,” Christmas said. “He’s a forward, he’s a point guard, he brings the ball down … He’s a versatile player and not having him in the game is something, too, but everyone else stepped up and we had to do what we had to do.”