Posted on Sun, Nov. 15, 2009

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Shocks will go without Hannah

The NCAA rules that Wichita State's senior point guard must miss the first three games as punishment for the school's failure to certify his eligibility last season.

BY PAUL SUELLENTROP

The Wichita Eagle

Wichita State senior Clevin Hannah wore a black practice jersey with the scout team and tormented the starters Saturday afternoon.

That is all he will do for the next eight days, much to the dismay of WSU coach Gregg Marshall. The NCAA suspended Hannah, WSU's leading returning scorer, for three games because he was not certified as an amateur before the 2008-09 season. The NCAA denied WSU's appeal on Saturday.

"I have a hard time wrapping myself around the fact that an administrative error in our compliance... could come back to cost a student-athlete," Marshall said. "He knew nothing about it. He had nothing to do with it. He, and we, have to now deal with an error that others made. And the NCAA deemed that to be appropriate and just."

Hannah's suspension begins today in the opener against Fairleigh Dickinson. The Shockers play NCAA Division II Arkansas-Monticello on Wednesday and Pittsburgh on Nov. 23. He will be eligible for WSU's Nov. 24 game against either Texas or Iowa in the CBE Classic in Kansas City.

Baseball player Taylor Gilmore, a walk-on, will miss six games in the spring for his lack of certification.

Marshall held Hannah out of last week's exhibition game against Newman in hopes the NCAA would count that toward the suspension. Hannah made his case during a conference call on Thursday, all to no avail.

"I believe we did everything in our power to prove to he NCAA that Clevin and Taylor were not at fault," WSU athletic director Eric Sexton said in a news release. "However, the NCAA is treating all similar cases that occurred during the 2008- 09 season with a withholding penalty. We have put additional measures in place to ensure that we avoid a similar occurrence in the future."

Marshall declined to comment further. His immediate concern is finding a point guard for three games. In addition to leading the offense, Hannah is also WSU's best outside shooter.

Sophomore Toure Murry, who played some point last season, will start today. Freshman Demetric Williams scored 11 points in 19 minutes in the exhibition game, but also turned the ball over three times. Freshman Kenny Manigault, who played 12 minutes against Newman, is another option.

"Someone's got to fill the void," Marshall said. "Baptism by fire for the young guards. We'll begin trying to do what we do and, hopefully, we'll be able to do it."

Murry, who led WSU with 16 points in the exhibition, is capable of leading with his passing and scoring. Marshall prefers him as the shooting guard where he can concentrate on scoring. Murry had five assists and four turnovers in the exhibition game. With his experience last season, Murry is the clear choice to run the offense without Hannah.

"I'm pretty comfortable with it," Murry said.

Williams and Manigault are freshmen, prone to a good play followed by a series of mistakes. Williams is the superior shooter. Manigault is a better athlete and defender who is most comfortable pushing the ball.

"I know that we're losing a big guy in Clevin," Williams said. "I just want to come in and feed the ball to the people who need the ball. Just run the team and get everybody in their sets."

Marshall isn't sure what to expect from his freshmen.

"That's the $64,000 question, what they will be able to do at this stage," he said. "If one doesn't, I will go with the other one."

The scenario makes for a nervous day for Marshall. Fairleigh Dickinson is an experienced team that switches defenses and pushes the ball.

"They've got some guys that can drive it and they've got some big guys that can block shots," he said. "We'll have to come ready to play."

Check Paul Suellentrop's Shocker blog at blogs.kansas.com/shockwaves. Reach him at 316-269-6760 or psuellentrop@wichitaeagle.com.