UNLV basketball players Jaylan Ballou, left, (22) and Cheickna Dembele (11) practice at Mendenhall Center on the UNLV campus Monday, August 1, 2016. The Rebels are practicing in preparation for a tournament later this month in the Bahamas.
Wednesday, Oct. 5, 2016 | 6:25 p.m.
Rebels forward Cheickna Dembele has been cleared by the NCAA Clearinghouse and is eligible immediately, UNLV confirmed this afternoon. The 6-foot-11, 235-pound freshman is originally from Mali, Africa, and most recently played at Scotland Performance Institute in Pennsylvania.
First-year coach Marvin Menzies said last week at UNLV’s first official practice that all of Dembele’s transcripts were recently submitted and the Rebels expected a quick resolution. That proved to be the case, though UNLV must now wait for Dembele to get healthy before getting on the practice court.
Dembele is recovering from a foot injury, and Menzies said it would be a few weeks before the big man might be ready to go. He’s expected to be a major contributor this season in UNLV’s frontcourt, which has only four players listed at 6-8 or taller.
Taylor Bern can be reached at 948-7844 or [email protected]. Follow Taylor on Twitter at twitter.com/taylorbern.
Join the Discussion:
Check this out for a full explanation of our conversion to the LiveFyre commenting system and instructions on how to sign up for an account.
Full comments policy