Marauders’ Rider Ruled Ineligible for Basketball

J. R. Rider, Antelope Valley College’s highly touted basketball transfer from Allen County (Kan.) College, has been declared academically ineligible for the season, Coach Newton Chelette said Thursday.

To be eligible to play junior college basketball in California, an athlete must pass 24 units with a 2.0 grade-point average from fall to fall.

Rider had taken 41 units and has a GPA of 1.93, according to Richard Curtis, an academic adviser for Antelope Valley College athletes. Chelette said Rider was declared ineligible this week.

Curtis said the problem arose because of incorrect advice Chelette received as well as confusion over a summer-school grade.

Rider, a 6-foot-5 swingman who orally has committed to play for UNLV, had participated in fall practice under his and the Marauder coaching staff’s assumption that he was eligible, Chelette said. A recalculation of his grade-point average, which included a late-arriving failing grade from a summer-school course, left Rider ineligible, Curtis said.

“The sad thing . . . is this: J. R.’s transcript was evaluated, he was told what he had to do to become eligible,” Chelette said. “He did everything in good faith. He did it.”

Rider could not be reached for comment.

Unlike NCAA athletes, whose eligibility status can change at semester breaks, California junior college athletes are ineligible for the duration of their season.

Chelette said Rider was declared ineligible “because of a very unfortunate mathematical error in evaluating his unofficial transcript from Allen County.”

Rider arrived at Antelope Valley in June with a checkered academic past. John Masterson, the Allen County sports information director, said Rider came to Allen County in order to pick up his high school-equivalency diploma.

During the 1989-90 season at Allen County, Rider averaged 31 points a game but did not excel in the classroom.

“He was ineligible here,” Allen County basketball Coach Neil Crane said. “He flunked three classes second semester. He didn’t even attend.” Rider’s position was not untenable, though.

“Academically he was on very shaky ground but nothing that couldn’t have been rectified,” Crane said.

Rider does have some recourse. He will appeal to the Foothill Conference to regain his eligibility.

Chelette said he expects Rider to finish the fall semester at Antelope Valley but does not know whether Rider will return for the spring semester.