In less than two hours, the Badgers will take on UW-River Falls for their lone exhibition game of the season. Unfortunately for the Badgers, who will already be without freshman guard Brevin Pritzl (foot) and sophomore guard Matt Ferris, freshman forward Andy Van Vliet will not be allowed to suit up due to an eligibility issue.

Van Vliet, the 6’11” kid from Belgium, has been ruled ineligible by the NCAA and his appeal is pending. A Wisconsin spokesman explained Van Vliet’s situation:

NCAA rules state that prospective student-athletes have one year to enroll in a collegiate institution following their high school graduation or expected graduation date. Van Vliet played basketball as an amateur outside of that one-year window, which has resulted in the eligibility issue.

Citing factors outside of Van Vliet’s control, UW Athletics filed a waiver with the NCAA. UW was informed Wednesday afternoon that the waiver was denied and UW plans to appeal as soon as possible.

Van Vliet has shown promise with his length and shooting abilities. There’s no doubt that Bo Ryan was hoping to get him some minutes in non-conference play, so the timing is unfortunate for Van Vliet.

The Badgers should hear within two weeks about the results of the appeal, and the worst case scenario is that Van Vliet sits out this season and returns as a sophomore in the 2016-17 season.

Bo Ryan said the following after Wednesday’s exhibition:

“It doesn’t take very long once you send in the appeal. His is an unusual circumstance…How about people chanting ‘free Van Vliet? The Belgian system is the toughest in the world..It’s a long story. They have to reject it initially, I guess.'”