More woes for Indiana program: Three players suspended for off-court incidents
The news out of Indiana continues to be bad.
Sophomore forward Troy Williams, sophomore guard Stanford Robinson and freshman forward Emmitt Holt have each been suspended four games for off-court incidents. IU coach Tom Crean announced the suspensions on his weekly radio show Monday night.
Holt was suspended for his role in an automobile accident Saturday that left a teammate critically injured. ESPN’s Jeff Goodman reported that Williams and Robinson were suspended for failing drug tests.
“We have to grow up as a unit and as a group of young men. The bottom line is this: You get to make your own choices but you don’t get to pick your consequences,” Crean said on his show, which was streamed live by WHCC-FM in Bloomington, Ind.
The Hoosiers will play the first of two exhibitions this season Thursday.
The suspensions were announced two days after Hoosier player Devin Davis was critically injured when he was struck by an SUV driven by Holt. Police cited Holt for misdemeanor illegal consumption of alcohol, and for being under age 21 and operating a vehicle with a blood alcohol content above 0.02. The school said Holt’s BAC was 0.025.
“Emmitt made a couple poor choices. He’s underage. He shouldn’t have been drinking. He shouldn’t have gotten behind the wheel of a car,” Crean said.
Davis suffered a severe head injury in the crash. Indiana team doctor Larry Rink said Sunday that Davis’ condition had improved. A crash report faulted Davis for walking into the road.
Crean grew emotional Monday as he recounted the incident.
“Nothing is worse than having to prepare a family for what I was a part of the other night,” he said.
Crean said coaches and players share a responsibility to produce better behavior.
“We’ve got to get our team to understand that there is nothing normal about being a college athlete,” Crean said. “You don’t get to have the same freedoms” that non-athletes enjoy.
Former Hoosiers star Cody Zeller, now a member of the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets, echoed Crean’s sentiment:
As an IUBB player you’re held to a higher standard. You can’t be a normal college kid but you get the privilege of wearing the candy stripes
— Cody Zeller (@CodyZeller) November 4, 2014
Robinson and junior guard Yogi Ferrell entered pretrial intervention programs in August after being charged in April with consumption of an alcoholic beverage by a minor and possession of false identification. Junior forward Hanner Mosquera-Perea was arrested in Bloomington in February on preliminary drunk driving charges.
The latest incidents have increased fans’ calls for Crean to be fired.
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