Stansbury suspends Slater for first half of 2006-07 season

[Greenhead22]

August 31, 2006

MSU suspends basketball starter Slater
By Michael Wallace
mwallace@clarionledger.com

Mississippi State basketball player Dietric Slater has been suspended for the first half of the 2006-07 season for a violation of team rules, coach Rick Stansbury said today.

Stansbury would not disclose the nature of the violation, but he said the offense will sideline the senior small forward for the entire fall semester.

“He’s not going to be with us,” Stansbury said. “He’ll be back. But not until the second semester.”

Slater, a 6-foot-3 versatile perimeter player from Waynesboro, will miss 50 percent of MSU’s games under the suspension, which equates to 15 regular-season games. Slater will not return until MSU’s third Southeastern Conference game on Jan. 13 at Kentucky. MSU opens the season Nov. 11 against Nicholls State and plays its SEC opener Jan. 7 at Tennessee. Slater will also miss key games against Clemson, Charlotte, Miami, George Mason, Missouri and the first of two conference games against rival Ole Miss.

Slater was not immediately available for comment.

The loss could be a significant blow for State, which is counting on Slater to help junior forward Charles Rhodes to provide experience and leadership to a team that will feature mostly sophomores and freshmen in the primary rotation this season.

Slater will not travel with the Bulldogs when they leave Friday for a three-game exhibition trip to western Canada over Labor Day weekend, Stansbury said. State will play two games on Saturday and one game on Sunday against Canadian university teams. Stansbury said Slater has not practiced with the team for the Canada trip but that he will be able to practice when State resumes preseason workouts in October.

Slater was set to be one of four returning starters for the Bulldogs after averaging 10.1 points and 4.9 rebounds last season. He made 19 starts in 24 games but missed the final week of the regular season and the SEC Tournament after partially tearing a knee ligament in a March 1 game at Arkansas.

[bigwater]

to hell with the football program...

after watching last nights game.. its gonna be another struggle..


but now bastekball, was something that i was looking forward to.. we have some people wiht experience coming back and i was cautiously hoping that we could make another run to the ncaa..

and then i find this schit out about slater..

dammit sometimes i wonder why i put myslef through such misery being a msu fan!!!!!!

[Grommet]

Ah hell only one game into the season and ya'll are already looking forward to basketball season.

[bigwater]

i've been looking forward to basketaball season since 2002...