OK, that’s not exactly what The Sporting News columnist Mike DeCourcy had to say about University of Wisconsin F Nigel Hayes using tonight’s Ohio State vs. Wisconsin game at Camp Randall Stadium as a photo op / electronic begging platform (see above), but pretty close. Y’see, not only is DeCourcy skeptical that Hayes is actually skint (“one of us knows enough about Hayes’ financial situation to know whether he truly is ‘broke’… what we do know is he receives a scholarship from Wisconsin that covers his tuition, room & board, books and fees, which combined total nearly $45,000 annually,”), but he’s quick to wonder, if the hoops scholarship is so shitty, why is Hayes still enrolled?

It was his decision to compete as a senior. He could have stayed in the draft, gone to summer league and into an NBA training camp. He could have signed to play professionally overseas if none of that went exactly as he wished. There was no shortage of opportunity available to a player of Hayes’ skills and accomplishments.

Beyond rules violations, there is the imprudence of Hayes making the case that he is being taken advantage of when he willingly accepted his current arrangement for a fourth consecutive year.

Friday on Twitter, Hayes posted a message stating sarcastically, “If only there was enough money to pay us,” after quoting a USA Today report that the Big Ten Conference generated $448 million in revenue.

But how much did the University of Wisconsin generate through the tuition it collects from its 43,000 students? It’s a whole lot more than $448 million.

Indeed. And what portion of that annual tuition windfall can be traced, in part, to Wisconsin’s membership in the Big Ten and their ability to compete at a high level in football and basketball? Were Hayes attempting to drag eyeballs to this particular topic after signing an NBA rookie contract, what are the odds DeCourcy and his colleagues would still manage to find fault?