Utah head coach Craig Smith announced Thursday that guard Gabe Madsen will miss an extended period of time.

Madsen suffered what Smith called a lower leg injury during the team’s loss to Oregon last Saturday. Madsen is expected to miss 4-6 weeks.

It’s a significant blow to the Runnin’ Utes. Madsen is the team’s second-leading scorer through 23 games, averaging 11.7 points to go with a team-best 37% shooting clip from 3-point range. His 20 steals are good for second-most on the team behind Lazar Stefanovic.

Madsen hit at least three triples in a game nine different times this season; Utah was 8-1 in those games. The Utes were also 13-2 when scoring in double-figures.

Utah opened its season 12-4, but has hit a bit of a rough patch since. The Runnin’ Utes have gone just 3-4 since.

They host Stanford Thursday night looking to bounce back from the loss to the Ducks.