Damn he died way too young. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family. http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/art...0404/1078/COL02 <div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'>Ex-UK player collapses Marvin Stone: 1981-2008 Marvin Stone, who played basketball at the University of Louisville and University of Kentucky, collapsed at halftime of a professional game in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday and died of an apparent heart attack. He was 26. "He was in a playoff game and collapsed in the locker room during halftime and was transported to a hospital and pronounced dead," said Stone's agent, Hirant Manakian, who is based in France. "We really don't have a lot of details right now. I know his family is in shock." U of L coach Rick Pitino said in a released statement from the school: "It really saddens us all at U of L to see a young man like Marvin lose his life at such a young age. Our deepest sympathies go out to the Stone family." Stone was playing for Al Ittihad Jeddah in the Saudi Arabia Elite Cup semifinals against Ohod. "He'd only signed with this team about two weeks ago," Manakian said. "He had played in Cyprus the earlier part of the season, and when his season ended in Cyprus, he signed with this team for the playoffs." " ... By all accounts, he was playing quite well," the agent added. Stone, a 6-foot-10 center/forward from Huntsville, Ala., played two-plus seasons for the Wildcats, averaging six points and 4.6 rebounds as a sophomore. He played nine games as a junior at UK before transferring to U of L in January 2002. Then-UK athletic director Larry Ivy and then-coach Tubby Smith received criticism for initially refusing to allow Stone to transfer to U of L because the Cardinals were annual opponents of the Wildcats. Stone became eligible at U of L in December 2002 and had a solid start, averaging 18.7 points and 10.3 rebounds in his first three games, including a 16-point, seven-rebound performance in an 81-63 win over UK. He started 23 games, averaging 10.3 points and 7.1 rebounds while shooting 51.8 percent from the field in his only season as a Cardinal. He was not chosen in the 2003 NBA Draft. Stone was a McDonald's All American at Huntsville's Grissom High School, averaging 19.3 points and 12.4 blocks as a senior, and was his state's Mr. Basketball in 1999. He was a member of the 1999 USA Basketball Men's Junior National Select Team. As a freshman at UK, Stone suffered a broken thumb but played with a splint and didn't miss a game, earning him the team's Most Courageous award.</div>
