April 6, 2009

FORMER VCU GREAT, SCHLEGEL, PASSES AWAY
Center from 1981-1985 loses battle with cancer
Video of 1985 Sun Belt Championship

RICHMOND, Va. – The Virginia Commonwealth University men’s basketball program lost one of its legends late last week as longtime center Mike Schlegel passed away after a long battle with cancer.

Schlegel was the anchor in the middle for the Black & Gold from 1981-1985 and led the Rams to three straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including the No. 2 seed in the West Region during his senior season.

He was named captain during that senior season (1984-1985) and led VCU to a 26-6 record and the 1985 Sun Belt Conference Championship.

The Bayshore, N.Y. native, finished his career with 1,173 points and 743 rebounds. Both of those figures ranked in the top-10 all-time when Schlegel graduated in 1985.

After graduating from VCU, he was selected in the fifth round of the 1985 NBA Draft by the New York Knicks. He proceeded to play nine seasons overseas in Spain before closing out his career with four seasons in France.

Schlegel will be greatly missed by his friends, family and all Rams fans.