Crawford Is a Wildcat Again
Freshman guard Joe Crawford rejoined Kentucky’s basketball team after leaving the squad last week because of a dispute over playing time.
Coach Tubby Smith said during a conference call Monday that Crawford will face “some sanctions,” but he did not say what they would be.
Crawford is working out with the team, but Smith would not say if he will play Wednesday when the Wildcats (12-2) are at Mississippi. Crawford met with Smith over the weekend and said he has been welcomed back.
“I’m ready to give this my all,” Crawford said in a statement. “I want to finish my college career as a Wildcat.”
Crawford, a 6-foot-4 star recruit from Detroit, left the Wildcats on Jan. 10. He was averaging 13.3 minutes, the sixth-highest total on the team. But his time had diminished in the two games immediately before his departure. He played four minutes in a win over South Carolina on Jan. 5 and a season-low three minutes in a loss to No. 2 Kansas. He was averaging 3.8 points and 2.4 rebounds.
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Suspended Pittsburgh guard Yuri Demetris faces burglary and simple assault charges after allegedly entering a former girlfriend’s apartment twice through a bedroom window and hitting her with a closed fist, university police said.
Demetris, suspended indefinitely by Coach Jamie Dixon after being arrested Sunday, will have a preliminary hearing Thursday. Dixon said Sunday that Demetris would not practice while serving the suspension, but did not mention the player’s arrest.
“Discipline and proper behavior must remain the foundation of our program,” Dixon said.
According to the police report, Demetris entered the woman’s apartment early Sunday, both times without her permission.
Demetris, a 6-4 senior from Pittsburgh, has started all 14 games and ranks fifth on the team in minutes played and is averaging 3.8 points and 3.4 rebounds. He did not score but had seven rebounds in 21 minutes Saturday in a 67-63 victory over Seton Hall.
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Cal State Fullerton’s Hardy Asprilla will miss the rest of the season because of a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee.
Asprilla led the Titans (8-4, 3-1 Big West) in rebounding (8.8) and averaged 8.5 points.