University of Richmond Athletics
Sylla Reinstated To Men's Basketball Team
01/09/2007 | Men's Basketball
Jan. 9, 2007
UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND, Va. - University of Richmond junior Oumar Sylla has been reinstated as a full member of the men's basketball team, effective immediately, and will now be able to represent the University competitively, Richmond Director of Athletics Jim Miller announced Monday. Sylla will be available to participate in the Spiders' Atlantic 10 game at St. Bonaventure Wednesday night (7 p.m.).
"I met with Oumar and then made the recommendation to the President that he be reinstated. After conferring on the matter, Dr. Cooper supported that recommendation," said Miller.
"The punishment Oumar received for pleading guilty to misdemeanor possession of stolen property has been substantial and, in my opinion, sufficient," continued Miller. "In my meeting with Oumar, it was clear that he was apologetic and knows that he did not respond properly when he discovered he had purchased stolen property. He has a clear understanding that his conduct can have serious implications for himself and the University and he is willing to take on even more restrictions to demonstrate his commitment to `doing the right thing'."
Sylla's reinstatement has been made with a series of conditions and guidelines. Should he violate any of these provisions, he will immediately become ineligible to represent the University competitively during the remainder of the 2006-07 academic year.
Sylla, a 6-7 guard/forward from Mali, West Africa, started all 30 games as a sophomore in 2005-06. He averaged 6.0 points, 3.8 rebounds and 33 minutes per game. He has missed the Spiders' first 14 games of the 2006-07 season.
