GAME NOTES: The injury/illness bug has officially hit the Michigan Wolverines as they get set for their Big Ten Conference matchup Tuesday at the RAC against the Rutgers Scarlet Knights.

Michigan lost star guard Caris LeVert for the season in the team's 56-54 victory over Northwestern on Saturday. LeVert suffered a foot injury and requires surgery - the same foot that was operated on in the offseason. The Wolverines are just 1-3 on the road this season.

Rutgers enters this clash on Tuesday having lost two consecutive games, and three of the team's last four overall. The Scarlet Knights are just 2-4 in conference play, and have managed a 6-4 mark at home this season.

This will be just the sixth meeting all-time between these new conference rivals. Michigan holds a 5-0 mark against Rutgers in the series dating back to 1933. This will be just the second time ever the Knights will host the Wolverines, and the first since the initial meeting.

Michigan was able to build up enough of a lead down the stretch to hold off a Northwestern comeback attempt in the game's final minutes Saturday. But Michigan paid the ultimate price, as LeVert suffered the season-ending injury late in the contest. He finished the game with a team-best 18 points, six rebounds and seven assists, while Derrick Walton Jr. was the only other Michigan player in double figures at 14. The Wolverines were able to defeat the Wildcats despite shooting only 34.5 percent from the floor, which included a 9- of-23 mark from 3-point distance.

LeVert isn't the only player whose status is in question moving forward. Guard Spike Albrecht is questionable with an upper respiratory infection, as is forward Ricky Doyle. Zak Irvin is listed as questionable with an illness as well, so the Michigan roster could be severely depleted heading into Tuesday's clash. LeVert was the team leader in scoring (14.9 ppg), rebounding (4.9 rpg) and assists (67), as well as in total steals (32). Irvin checks in at second on the team with 13.9 ppg. The only 100 percent active player in double-digit scoring for Michigan is Walton, who is averaging 10.3 ppg this season with 4.5 rpg. The Wolverines are netting 65.5 ppg this season on 41.5 percent shooting, and are giving up 62.3 ppg to opponents.

Rutgers took on Minnesota in Big Ten action on Saturday, and hung tough with the Golden Gophers in both halves of play, finishing the game shooting 50.8 percent from the floor. But the Scarlet Knights came up just short in the end, dropping the game to the Gophers, 89-80. Myles Mack led the Knights with 26 points, adding in eight assists and seven rebounds, but he also gave the ball away seven times. Kadeem Jack scored 19 points, and Bishop Daniels added 13 points for the Scarlet Knights. Junior Etou nearly chipped in with a double- double, scoring nine points and pulling down a team-best 10 boards.

The 5-foot-10 Mack has had a stellar season so far. The guard leads Rutgers in scoring, averaging 14.7 ppg with a team-best 86 assists. Jack is the only other player on the squad with a double-digit scoring average this season, as the forward comes in netting 12.8 ppg with 6.5 rpg, second on the roster to Etou's 7.1 boards per outing. The Scarlet Knights have been able to maintain a winning record despite the Big Ten's worst scoring average. The Knights are netting just 60.2 ppg this season on 40 percent shooting from the floor. But they are holding opponents to 62.7 ppg on 40.2 percent shooting.

Michigan going out on the road without LeVert, and perhaps Albrecht and Irvin, will be a not-so-welcomed adventure for the Wolverines. The loss of LeVert could be a season changer for Michigan, and a boost for Rutgers in this contest.