The state’s Mr. Basketball runner-up is back to being a recruit - a scenario that has him considering playing for the Spartans in 2002.
Fresh after receiving word he won’t be able to attend Michigan to play basketball next year, JaQuan Hart is now mulling over his options.
“Right now, Ohio State and Michigan State are tied at the top of my list,” said Hart, who attended Flint Northern High, famed Spartan Mateen Cleaves’ alma mater. “Then it’s Cincinnati and then Oklahoma.”
Hart signed a National Letter of Intent in November to play for U-M, but since his ACT score is not high enough - he got a 16 but needs a 17 - that commitment is no longer binding. While his grade-point average was high enough, U-M doesn’t offer athletic scholarships to partial qualifiers.
So Hart, who would’ve been a freshman this fall, is waving goodbye to the maize and blue and reopening the bidding for his talents.
Hart, who won’t be able to play college ball until 2002 because of NCAA transfer regulations, said he will make a decision as to where to attend college and play basketball by Monday.
“Where I go depends on how I feel about the team, if I’m comfortable with it,” Hart said. “MSU has great coaches. Coach (Tom) Izzo really knows his stuff and he’s won a national championship.
“Plus, it would be great to play with Kelvin Torbert, another Flintstone.”
Torbert, who beat out Hart for the Mr. Basketball title, committed to MSU in November.
While Hart won’t be able to play next season, he’ll be able to practice with his new team. He said he’ll use the year to add muscle to his frame, which he could need to play Division I basketball.
The 6-foot-6, 175-pound guard was a Class A All-State selection by The Associated Press.
He averaged 18.9 points per game during the regular season while shooting 70.4 percent from the field and 43.2 percent on three-pointers. He also led Northern to the state semifinals.
And while he went to the same high school that produced Cleaves, now with the Detroit Pistons, Hart said he had his heart set on going to U-M.
“I’m very upset with not being able to play there,” Hart said. “I’ll miss everything - the coaching staff, the fans, the players. I’ve always wanted to go to Michigan. I grew up wanting to play at Michigan.”
Hart said he talked with new U-M coach Tommy Amaker about his situation. Amaker, though, told the freshman there’s little that can be done.
Hart also said the chance of playing a game at U-M in another team’s uniform would be painful.
“It’s gonna hurt,” Hart said. “Because I was supposed to be there.”
Kevin Tuczek can be reached tuczekke@msu.edu.
