Michigan State coach Tom Izzo discusses the Spartans' 107-62 win over Houston Baptist at Breslin Center on Monday, Dec. 18, 2017. Chris Solari, Detroit Free Press
Thomas Kithier's fight for basketball eligibility has landed in federal court, and now there's one more allegation on the table:
Bullying.
Kithier, the Michigan State basketball signee who was ruled ineligible after transferring to Clarkston High School during the offseason, filed suit against the Michigan High School Athletic Association, Chippewa Valley Schools and administrators from both parties on Friday in Detroit, according to a court filing obtained by the Lansing State Journal.
In the lawsuit, Kithier maintains his claim that he transferred to Clarkston from Macomb Dakota for academic reasons and claims the Dakota athletic staff "bullied" him with inappropriate text messages and inappropriate and unprofessional behavior after he chose to leave the school, where he played his first three years of high school basketball.
The MHSAA has ruled that Kithier, a 6-foot-8 forward, made an athletically motivated transfer to Clarkston, where he joined fellow MSU signee Foster Loyer, an AAU teammate over the summer.
Kithier's transfer drew the ire of Macomb administrators, who reported the transfer to the MHSAA and refused to sign Kithier's educational transfer form, which would have paved the way for immediate eligibility if not for the MHSAA ruling the move athletically motivated.
This is a developing story. Check back for more updates.
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