AD Maturi Announces Decision on Trevor Mbakwe

University of Minnesota director of athletics Joel Maturi announced Monday that junior forward Trevor Mbakwe will not play for the Golden Gopher basketball team until his pending legal matter has been resolved in a satisfactory manner. Minnesota is ranked #18 in the ESPN/USA Today and 25th in the AP preseason basketball poll and returns their top nine scorers from last season.

Joel Maturi said that Trevor Mbakwe will continue to attend classes, be a part of the team, and practice with the Gophers. He will not dress for home games nor travel to away competition, according to Maturi.

“I believe that it is in Trevor’s best interest and the interest of the University of Minnesota that this situation is fully resolved before we allow him to compete,” Maturi said. “These types of decisions are always difficult and many factors must be considered. At the end of the day I believe I must do what’s right for Trevor and this University. For now that includes limiting his contributions to the basketball program to practice.”

Mbakwe, a 2007 graduate of St. Bernard’s High School in St. Paul, signed a National Letter of Intent with the Gophers in November of 2008. He originally attended Marquette University out of high school, appearing in 11 games during an injury-plagued freshman campaign 2007-08. Mbakwe then transferred to Miami Dade College, where he earned Southern Conference Player-of-the-Year honors as sophomore in 2008-09. He has three years to play his final two years of eligibility.