IHSA executive director Marty Hickman indicated Thursday that he anticipates the Mooseheart boys basketball team will be eligible to compete in the postseason next month.
Mooseheart's program was placed on probation in December in conjunction with the IHSA Board of Directors' vote to allow South Sudanese transfer students Akim Nyang, Makur Puou and Mangisto Deng to continue competing after Hickman had earlier declared the towering trio ineligible because of a violation of the IHSA's recruiting bylaws.
In an emailed statement to the Chronicle, Hickman said Mooseheart is on track to satisfy the IHSA's requirements to be released from probation. Those requirements include devising a compliance plan to more closely adhere with the IHSA's bylaws in the future.
“We have been working closely with individuals from Mooseheart High School and the school is in the final stages of completing the IHSA’s requirements from the ruling on December 11," Hickman said in the statement. "We anticipate that they will complete the necessary steps well in advance of the start of the IHSA Boys Basketball State Series and be eligible to compete.”
The boys basketball postseason for the smaller schools – Classes 1A and 2A – is set to begin the week of Feb. 18.
Mooseheart is 14-5 on the season, with the South Sudanese players comprising three-fifths of the team's starting lineup.
