Thursday, Dec. 11, 2008 | 9:49 p.m.
UPDATE: Team reaction: Frustrated at playing time, Hamga departs UNLV
UNLV center Beas Hamga pressures Cal forward Jamal Boykin during the second half of the game Nov. 28 at the Thomas & Mack Center. Cal won the game 73-55.
Lon Kruger has preached patience with Beas Hamga ever since the 7-foot center from Cameroon arrived on campus over a year ago. Now, it might hold true in terms of determining the redshirt freshman's future with the UNLV program.
Jerry Meyer of Rivals.com wrote Thursday night that Hamga had been granted an official release from UNLV. He reported the story without attribution.
Kruger said Thursday night that nothing is official yet regarding Hamga's potential departure -- or his return.
"We're talking with Beas right now, nothing official has happened -- not to say that it won't," Kruger said. "We've been meeting with him the last couple of days. It will be ongoing."
Hamga, along with the rest of the Rebels, wraps up finals week for the fall semester on Friday. If Hamga were to leave, it would ideally be before the start of the spring semester on Jan. 12. That way, a transfer to another Division-I school would make him eligible following next year's fall semester, as opposed to sitting out an entire year if he left following this season.
Fans have had to be just as patient as Kruger has been with Hamga, who is still developing his raw skills.
Plenty of expectations have followed Hamga, ever since Rivals tapped him as a five-star recruit and the No. 26 overall prospect in the class of 2007. But this season, he's only appeared in five of nine games for the 7-2 Rebels. While playing 5.2 minutes per game, he's averaged 1 point and 0.8 rebounds per contest.
He hasn't appeared in a game since UNLV's 73-55 loss to California on Nov. 28. He played one minute in the defeat.
Meanwhile, junior college transfer Darris Santee and freshman Brice Massamba currently have strangleholds on the starting and backup center spots, respectively.
"It's one of those deals, it's a tough situation for Beas," Kruger added. "We certainly appreciate that. He doesn't get the opportunity to play very much, and he's got the expectations. He's done a nice job, worked hard, yet it's difficult."
Now, the two sides will play the patience card yet again, with no date set for a final decision on Hamga's future.
"There's no rigid timetable," Kruger said. "We'll meet with him each day and just play it by ear."
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