MEN’S BASKETBALL: Likely starting guard was arrested earlier for his part in a cell-phone scam--The Post-Tribune
Aug. 22, 2006
By Mark Lazerus / Post-Tribune deputy sports editor
Valparaiso University on Monday granted Jimmie Miles a release from his basketball scholarship so that the suspended guard can seek a transfer to another school.
Miles, a senior who was penciled in as the starting point guard for the Crusaders this season, was arrested last month for playing what police described as a minor role as a delivery person in a cell phone scam. Head coach Homer Drew indefinitely suspended Miles from the team, and shortly after the arrest the two met to discuss Miles’ future. Both sides agreed that a transfer and a fresh start were in Miles’ best interests. Drew said he never decided whether Miles’ suspension would become permanent, because it became immediately apparent that he was going to seek a transfer.
“I met with Jimmie and his family and we went through everything and felt this was the best direction to go in,” Drew said. “Now he can look for a school to finish his degree. It’s imperative to help him find a place to get his degree. He’s only got two semesters to go.”
Drew said he will assist Miles in his search for a new school. If Miles transfers to a Division II or III school, he can play right away. If he goes to another Division I school, he wouldn’t be eligible until the 2007-08 season.
The 6-2 Miles played in 19 games last season, starting 11. He averaged only 4.9 points per game, but was expected to play a major role on a young team as a senior. Now forward Moussa Mbaye is the lone senior on the team.
“(Miles) is an awful, awful good player,” Drew said. “He was one of our best.”
Drew said it’s too early to tell who'll step into Miles’ role, but incoming freshmen Paul Guede and Samuel Haanpaa appear to be logical candidates.
“The young people will get an opportunity to play, that’s for sure,” Drew said. “We’ve got only one senior now, with eight freshmen and sophomores. We will be young, but we like what we have. We’re going to be a very fun team to watch.”
Miles’ release means the Crusaders have one more scholarship, but with school starting, it’s unlikely that slot will be filled this season.
“We don’t have anyone coming in,” Drew said. “We won’t fill it this year unless something miraculous happens in the next day or two.”
Contact Mark Lazerus at 648-3140 or mlazerus@post-trib.com
MIKE HUTTON COLUMN: Projected top class instead bottomed out for Crusaders
Aug. 22, 2006
Unless Moussa Mbaye turns into Kareem Abdul-Jabbar next year, which is about as likely as me being hired by the New York Times, one fact is certain about Valparaiso University’s 2003 recruiting class.
It can officially be classified as a near-total failure.
Throw those copies of Hoop Scoop into the trash if you bleed VU brown and gold. Ask for your money back if you actually paid the $460 yearly fee.
That publication ranked VU’s class that year as the 19th best in the nation. Better than UCLA, Florida, and Missouri. It was called one of the best mid-major classes every assembled.
That publication was referenced frequently and exhaustively in descriptions of the wonder class.
Boy, were they ever wrong. Dewey defeats Truman, the infamous Chicago Tribune headline, was closer to the truth.
With the news that Jimmie Miles has decided to transfer to another school after getting arrested earlier this summer in a cell phone scam, Mbaye is the last player standing in the Athletics-Recreation Center from that heralded four-person class.
Mbaye, a 6-9 forward/center, has never averaged more than three points per game in what has mostly been a reserve roll for him.
And the other two players? One — Kenny Harris — isn’t playing basketball anymore and the other, Oumar Sylla, transferred to Richmond after his freshman year.
Taken individually, their stories are, in some ways, sad.
Harris, a 6-9 center, collapsed during a work-out in the spring of 2005 and his heart stopped. He was in a coma for weeks before he woke up. He is better now but he won’t ever play competitive basketball again. Harris battled weight and back problems for most of his two-year career and it appeared that he was rounding into the best shape of his life when he went down.
Miles, a lightning-quick point guard with a good shot, struggled with injuries and illness for three seasons. He had flashes where he looked brilliant, scoring 22 points against Charlotte in 2004.
Mostly, he’ll be remembered for a mysterious stomach ailment that kept him out of numerous games and his arrest last month for being the delivery man in a scam to sell illegally obtained cell phones.
Sylla, who in one season had distinguished himself as a defensive stopper for the team, did have a serviceable season for the Spiders.
He started every game, averaging six points and 33 minutes per contest. He was second on the team in steals. But the minute he knew he was good, he left, perhaps because he was going to have to play behind Dan Oppland for three years.
Even had they stayed together healthy and whole, it’s ludicrous to believe that they were really a top 20 class.
The premature hype lavished on these players did the program a disservice.
Everybody wanted to buy into the dream but the price turned out to be some impossible expectations for VU and its coaching staff.
This ought to be a lesson for college coaches.
Treat them like high school seniors who aren’t very good until proved otherwise. And don’t ever cite Hoop Scoop when sending out press releases detailing your latest recruits.
Contact Mike Hutton at 648-3139 or at mhutton@post-trib.com
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