IN BRIEF : Portland U. Cage Player Arrested

University of Portland basketball forward Josh Lowery was arrested on an assault charge after a female student was hit in the face, police said today.

Lowery, 21, of Oakland, was accused of fourth-degree assault after Britta Davis, 21, of Longview, Wash., was struck in the face early Sunday during a party near the campus, police said. Davis told police she and Lowery had been arguing before she was hit. Davis claimed she suffered a broken nose.

Lowery faces arraignment Feb. 28 in Multnomah County District Court.

Lowery, a junior guard, has been “suspended indefinitely until the university can conduct a complete investigation of the incident and can tell me why this altercation took place,” Pilots Coach Larry Steele said.

Lowery, the Pilots’ leading scorer this season with an average of 16 points per game, scored 25 points Saturday night in Portland’s 87-84 overtime victory over San Francisco.