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Nov. 18, 2009

BELLINGHAM, Wash. - Western Washington University men's basketball starting forward Michael Duty (Seattle/O'Dea) will be out indefinitely after fracturing a finger on his left hand Monday in the Vikings' home opener against Northwest University.

The 6-foot-6 Duty was averaging a team-best 12.8 points in Western's first four games and was the second-leading rebounder at 5.8 per contest. He was shooting 47.7 percent (21-of-44) from the field and 72.7 percent (8-of-11) at the free throw line.

"I feel really badly for Michael and our team," said Western coach Brad Jackson. "We're in the process of fully determining the extent of the injury, but we're going to be without a really good player for an indefinite period of time and will have to make adjustments accordingly."

Duty was named MVP at the 2009 Disney Tip-Off Classic to start the season, helping the Vikings tie for the tourney title.

Last year, Duty, a transfer from Bellevue CC, helped Western to its first outright Great Northwest Athletic Conference championship, averaging 10.3 points and 4.5 rebounds as he started 19 of the Vikings' 27 games.

Western, 3-1, competes in Seattle Pacific Tip-Off Classic on Friday (3 p.m.) and Saturday (3 p.m.), meeting Cal State Monterey Bay on the first day and Dominican CA on the second.