Ndiaye, Guthridge Need to Set Record Straight

The color of my skin has nothing to do with the reaction I had to reading that Makhtar Ndiaye recanted his claim that a racial epithet was used during the semifinal NCAA basketball game between North Carolina and Utah. But, my being a parent has everything to do with my outrage at both Ndiaye and Coach Bill Guthridge.

I have tried to teach my children that a foundation of mandatory behavior is telling the truth. Without it, trust, friendship, partnerships, really nothing, will be complete.

Ndiaye lied when he claimed the Utah player used the N-word. He didn’t “say some things he should not have said.” He lied.

Then, to make matters worse, Coach Guthridge said that Ndiaye “said some things that were not appropriate . . . “ Both Ndiaye’s and the coach’s weak attempts at an explanation were pitiful and offensive. The lie was grossly unsportsmanlike and the coach’s explanation was worse.

STUART H. SELTER, Agoura Hills