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Star Freshman guard Shabazz Muhammad, the crown jewel of Ben Howland's #1 ranked recruiting class, has been cleared to play, effective immediately:
The university required the student-athlete to miss 10 percent of the season (three games) and repay approximately $1,600 in impermissible benefits. The NCAA agreed the actions taken by the university were sufficient. Because Muhammad has already sat out three games, he is now eligible to compete.
What had seemed like a hopeless situation not days before has resolved in our favor, and the outlook on the season has just been given a massive upgrade. It's fantastic news for UCLA basketball but officially takes away any excuses for Ben Howland for not producing a blockbuster season this year.
No doubt lot of this has to do with the pressure on the NCAA from the recent expose in the LA Times. The whole world was watching and the NCAA buckled under pressure. What an amazing week for the BN community and hopefully it's a sign for Saturday.