Nate Bendall to have heart surgery

Utah State junior Nate Bendall will have a minor surgical procedure to prevent the recurrence of the heart arrhythmia he experienced last month following the game Northeastern in Boston.

A source close to the USU basketball team told the Deseret News Monday afternoon that Bendall will likely undergo the arthroscopic surgery on Christmas Eve and miss only one game — the Dec. 29 contest against Western Oregon.

At Northeastern on Nov. 21, Bendall’s heart rate skyrocketed and didn’t settle down until after a visit to a Boston-area hospital.

Though Bendall has not had a recurrence of the problem and had a series of tests that have indicated he is healthy, he’ll nevertheless have the surgery to make sure it is not a problem in the future.

The procedure, the source said, will involve a laser catheter inserted into a major blood vessel and a fairly non-invasive internal surgery.

Utah State opens its Western Athletic Conference season just nine days after Bendall’s surgery has been scheduled. The Aggies will be at New Mexico State on January 2 and Bendall is expected to be back with the team and ready to play, the source said.