The Morning Dish – Friday, October 3rd
Patriots Act: Six George Mason student athletes have been suspended for violations of team rules and policies. Two of the men’s basketball team, sophomore forward Trent Wurtz and senior guard Richard Tynes, along with four members of the women’s basketball team will miss up to four games. Wurtz will miss the Patriot’s first three games, while Tynes will miss an exhibition game against the One-on-One All Starts, scheduled for November 13th. The school would not release details on the nature of the violations, but did state that they were separate incidents.
Magic Statue: Michigan State University has announced that they will dedicate a statue to former player and Hall of Famer Earvin “Magic” Johnson. The statue will be bronze and is approximately 12 feet tall, including a three-foot base. The artist, Omri Amrany from Highland Park, Illinois, also designed the Michael Jordan statue at the United Center, and the Harry Caray statue at Wrigley field. Johnson, who led Jud Heathcote’s 1979 squad to the national championship (downing Larry Bird’s Indiana State in the highest rated NCAA Finals ever), will have the statue dedicated on the weekend of November 1st, prior to the Spartans’ football game against Michigan. Additionally, Johnson and the Harlem Globetrotters will face Tom Izzo’s Spartans in an exhibition that weekend, and Larry Bird will serve has honorary coach. This season is the 25th anniversary of that title team, and the Coca-Cola Spartan Classic, held November 29th and 30th, will feature all four teams from the 1979 Final Four (Indiana State, DePaul, Penn, and Michigan State).
Washington Delay: Washington recruit Tre Simmons did not enroll for the first day of classes, which was Monday, as eligibility questions cropped up. Simmons, a transfer from Green River Community College (Auburn, Washington), has academic questions being raised by admissions regarding two classes needed for his two-year degree, without which he cannot play for the Huskies, even at mid-season. The 6-5 forward had two games of over 50 points, and averaged 29.8 points per game last season for the Gators.
