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NC State's Kayla Jones has patella tendon injury; status for Sweet 16 uncertain

NC State starter Kayla Jones' status for the Sweet 16 is uncertain due to a patella tendon injury, coach Wes Moore said Tuesday.

Jones, a 6-foot-1 forward, left the No. 1-seeded Wolfpack's first-round game against North Carolina A&T on Sunday with the knee injury, and did not play in Tuesday's 79-67 win over No. 8 seed South Florida.

"I don't know when she might be back; we were fortunate to get through today without her," Moore said. "A lot of it's gonna just depend on the pain and how intense it is. ... Hopefully she'll improve in the next few days and we can get her back out there."

Jones is averaging 11.9 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.8 assists.

NC State will face the winner of Wednesday's Indiana-Belmont matchup in the Sweet 16 on Saturday.

Even without Jones, NC State had all five starters score in double figures Tuesday, led by sophomore wing Jakia Brown-Turner's 19 points.