NCAA spokesman Chuck Wynne told The Washington Post on Friday that the NCAA is not close to ruling on the eligibility status of Maryland freshman big man Alex Len. New Terps coach Mark Turgeon indicated in his session with the press at media day on Wednesday that a ruling on Len's eligibility would likely be handed down on Friday. This appears to be far from the case, according to Wynne who spoke with Liz Clarke of The Washington Post.
"There has been no decision made one way or the other on this young man's eligibility. We're not anywhere close to decision-making stage."
The 7'1 center from the Ukraine would be a key contributor in the middle for the Terps in Turgeon's first year. Len's uncertain status means that he will not be able to practice with the team until a ruling is made. He was scheduled to partake in Friday night's "Maryland Madness" but will now be held out from participating in those festivities as well.
The issue of Len's eligibility arose recently when there were questions about reimbursement and compensation while playing as a junior for Ukraine, comparable to the issues Enes Kanter encountered last year at Kentucky. According to the NCAA and Wynne, those questions will remain unanswered for some time as they try to coordinate an investigation overseas.
"We have made requests [for further information], and we are awaiting the answer. I can't give you a timeline as to when we think it'll come because you're talking about 18 time zones away, with different languages and different priorities."