Kentucky freshman Patrick Patterson will miss the rest of the season after being diagnosed with a stress fracture in his left ankle.

Patterson, the only freshman ranked among the SEC’s top 10 scorers (16.4 points per game) and rebounders (7.7 rebounds per game), had an x-ray taken Friday morning at the UK Hospital that confirmed the injury.

Patterson is wearing a cast on his left foot and will be out approximately eight weeks.

This is a big blow for the Wildcats, who are a classic "bubble team" with just over two weeks to go until Selection Sunday.

Kentucky has three regular season games left - Sunday at Tennessee, Wednesday at South Carolina, and the home finale a week from Sunday against Florida. The Wildcats would likely need to win out, or at the very least take 2 of 3 to get an automatic bid. However, without their star freshman that is a tall order for them to fill.