GU’s Landry Edi ruled ineligible for eight games

Gonzaga junior forward Guy Landry Edi has been ruled ineligible for eight games by the NCAA, Bulldogs athletic director Mike Roth said.

Gonzaga knew during the recruiting process that Landry Edi, a transfer from Midland (Texas) College, would be ineligible, but the school was under the impression he would sit for two games, Roth said. The NCAA set the suspension at eight games after reviewing Landry Edi’s situation.

Gonzaga is appealing the decision, Roth said.

“We know that it could be a maximum of eight games, but we’re appealing that and hoping for less,” he said. “We knew for sure he was going to have to sit two games, based on his playing on an upper-level team in France when he was 15 or 16.”

The NCAA informed Gonzaga it was OK for Landry Edi to play in Friday’s exhibition game. He scored four points and grabbed three rebounds in 16 minutes in the Bulldogs’ 95-51 win over Carroll College.

Gonzaga’s first eight games are against Eastern Washington, Washington State, Hawaii, Western Michigan, Notre Dame, Illinois, Michigan State and Oral Roberts. The Battle in Seattle, in which Gonzaga faces Arizona at KeyArena, is GU’s ninth game.

The 6-foot-6, 218-pound Landry Edi averaged 16.3 points and seven rebounds during the 2011 National Junior College Athletic Association Tournament to help Midland capture the championship. Landry Edi was born in Ivory Coast and grew up in Paris. He is expected to be in GU’s rotation at small forward.

Roth hopes to learn the result of Gonzaga’s appeal soon, but added there isn’t a timeline.