A five-day period could determine how long North Carolina lasts in the NCAA Tournament.
Ty Lawson will rest his injured big right toe before UNC's next game, which will be on Friday in Memphis, Tenn., against Gonzaga in the South Regional semifinals.
UNC will learn in the next several days if Lawson can come back after playing 31 minutes and scoring 23 points in Saturday's 84-70 win over LSU, or if he suffered another setback.
Lawson, UNC's point guard, is in almost the same situation that he was in March 9, a day after he played 36 minutes in a 79-71 win over Duke to close the regular season.
The toe swelled then and pain increased, and Lawson missed three consecutive games. The LSU game was his first game since playing against Duke.
Lawson said that his toe was swelling and hurting after the LSU game, but he is confident that he can be ready to play against Gonzaga.
"Hopefully I can get a couple more days of rest," Lawson said. "We don't play until Friday so I can rest and get back to what I've been doing."
Chris Hirth, UNC's basketball trainer, started ice treatment on Lawson's toe after the LSU game.
One matter that Lawson will likely pass on this week is any additional advice from his father, George, on what treatment should be applied.
Lawson smiled and said that a suggestion his father made after the Duke game might have contributed to his slow recovery.
"It was probably all my dad's fault," Lawson said. "He said to put it in hot water with Epsom salts. He said it was an old home remedy. I said, `All right, I'll try it.' The next day it was real big.
"I told the doctors and they looked at me like I was crazy. I'm like, `I've got to do what my dad says.' But I won't do that again. I won't put it in hot water and make it worse. I'll just ice it from now on."
Lawson needed the help of a pain-killing shot to play against Duke. He did not have a shot before playing LSU.
Even if the toe is painful against Gonzaga, Lawson believes that the experience gained by playing against LSU will help.
"I haven't ran on it this hard since the Duke game," he said. "Knowing what's coming and the pain's coming, I'll be more prepared for it. I've got two or three days' rest before I get back in the gym."
No treatment was needed at halftime, after Lawson played 14 minutes and helped UNC forge a 38-29 lead. Lawson said he moved the toe up and down the entire time that he was in the locker room to make sure that it did not stiffen.
A sprained left ankle last season in early February sidelined Lawson for six games. He said the toe injury is more difficult to deal with.
"This is a worse injury," he said. "It hindered me trying to push off and things like that. Your toe's a big part of your foot."
Lawson needed the first half to knock off the rust.
He said that sliding across the floor was difficult because of the pain. He added that he had to figure out where he could get shots and how he could play defense. He decided to play through the pain after halftime and scored 21 points, hitting six of eight shots, and keyed a 17-2 scoring run that broke a 63-63 tie.
Williams was concerned late in the first half when Lawson felt a sharp pain in the toe and came out to let Hirth make a check.
Wayne Ellington, UNC's shooting guard, wasn't surprised that Lawson played all but nine minutes of the game and played effectively.
"I told you guys he had a jammed toe," Ellington said, breaking into a big grin. "There was nothing wrong with him."
Danny Green and Tyler Hansbrough were not convinced that UNC could have lost if Lawson had not played. Lawson is hopeful that game settled the question of his willingness to play through pain, a matter under much debate.
"I showed everybody I'm a tough player," Lawson said. "I can play through an injury. That's satisfying to me, just knowing that. Coach said, `Dennis The Menace just got tougher.'"
■ Bill Cole can be reached at bcole@wsjournal.com.
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