Cyclone Naz Long's second hip surgery went well; rehab starts Monday

Naz Long's second hip surgery in five weeks went like his first, said Iowa State athletics trainer Vic Miller.

"No hitches," he said after Thursday's procedure. "Everything went as expected."

Long's most recent surgery was to repair a torn labrum on his right hip. He had the same procedure on his left hip on March 31.

"What we're looking at is probably three to five months of rehab," Miller said in a phone interview. "Everything went well with the first one. We're keeping our fingers crossed that means the same will happen with this one. He'll start his rehab on Monday."

Long told reporters late last season that he planned to have the surgeries.

He won't participate in the team's August basketball-playing trip throughout Spain. He guaranteed during an interview last week that he will return in time for the Nov. 13 opener against Colorado at the Sanford Pentagon in Sioux Falls, S.D.

"It's my senior year," he said. "Nothing is going to hold me back."

Long started 33 of 34 games last season, averaging 10.1 points. He made a team-best 77 three-point shots.

But Nov. 13?

"He's on a tight time frame," Miller said. "The goal is to get his senior year on schedule as best we can, as opposed to a medical hardship. If his rehab goes perfectly, there's a chance he can be back by the start of the season.

"He's as strong as an ox, you know."