Rams basketball players provide lift to hospitalized 13-year-old

By Michael Ford
University News Services

An afternoon visit by VCU Rams players provided an emotional lift to a teenage patient at VCU Medical Center. The team brought gifts and words of encouragement for 13-year old Maurice Ealy. The Chesterfield County eighth grader was excited and animated as he accepted an autographed black and gold team basketball, a VCU Rams tee shirt and a 2004 team bulletin.

After successfully undergoing a liver transplant late last year, Maurice is currently being treated for aplastic anemia, a rare but extremely serious disorder that results from the unexplained failure of the bone marrow to produce blood cells. Essentially a factory producing the cells of the blood, bone marrow is the spongy red tissue found in the central portion of bones. Three types of blood cells carry out different functions: red cells transport oxygen from the lungs to all areas of the body, white cells fight infection by attacking and destroying germs, and platelets control bleeding by forming blood clots in areas of injury. Aplastic anemia is a rare but recognized complication affecting patients who develop liver failure.

The Manchester Middle School eighth grader shared his love of the game with players Julian Capel, Michael Doles, Nick George, Dominic Jones and Kevin Moore. He says he follows the National Basketball Association Sacramento Kings, but likely will be watching the Rams take on Colonial Athletic Association opponent George Mason University on Saturday, Jan. 17. Comcast SportsNet will carry the game live as it tips off at 4 p.m. from the Alltel Pavilion at VCU's Siegel Center, 1200 W. Broad St.

Maurice's mother, Melissa Ealy and John M. McCarty, M.D., director of the bone marrow transplant program at VCU Medical Center, approved the half-hour team visit.

For more about the Rams men's basketball program go to http://vcurams.vcu.edu/pjs_mbb.html.