MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Memphis State basketball coach Larry Finch said Thursday that standout recruit Anfernee Hardaway, one of the nation's top high school recruits, will not eligible to play for the Tigers as a freshman this year.
Finch said Hardaway, the Tigers' lone signee this year, will attend classes at Memphis State next fall but will not be on the basketball team because he failed to meet the requirements of the NCAA Proposition 48.
'I'm glad that he has decided to attend Memphis State,' Finch said. 'This will give him a chance to get ahead in his studies and to get accustomed to the academic challenges. It will be tough for him, but I'm sure he's capable.'
Hardaway had taken the ACT test five times with a top score of 17.2. He needed a score of 18, along with a 2.0 high school grade point average to become eligible as a freshman. The NCAA would accept a score of 17.5 on the test.
Under NCAA rules, Hardaway will need to pass 24 hours of college course work to be eligible to play as a sophomore.
Hardaway, a 6-7 guard, was Parade Magazine's high school basketball Player of the Year despite having to sit out six weeks during his senior season at Treadwell High School in Memphis due to academic problems. Hardaway averaged 36.7 points and 10.1 rebounds a game at Treadwell.
