University of Pittsburgh

Staying clean was just too much of a challenge for nearly half of this year's Pittsburgh Panther squad. With a slew of allegations and dismissals, the Panthers seemed ready to put the trainers in uniform by the time their miserable season ground to a halt. New coach Ben Howland inherited more misbehaving kids from Ralph Willard's troubled team than he knew what to do with.

Sophomore forward Chris Seabrooks set the tone for a rough season by getting arrested in October on assault charges. He allegedly slugged a student half his size outside a school dance. After pleading guilty to harassment and disorderly conduct, Seabrooks returned to the lineup with a 90-day suspended sentence and 100 hours of everyone player's favorite pastime -- community service. Not to be outdone, Seabrooks' frontcourt companion, Donatas Zavackas, snagged his own three-game suspension while the university checked into his alleged misuse of school access codes to make long distance phone calls.

To top it all off, teammates Derrick Worrell and Kellii Taylor are gone for good. Coach Howland sent Worrell packing when he couldn't take any more of his bad attitude, and Taylor got his walking papers after reportedly failing a drug test -- the last straw after a long record of misconduct. Taylor sat out six games last season for a stint of alcohol rehab and missed eight more this year for academic ineligibility. Despite his teammates' untimely departures, forward Isaac Hawkins still clung to the roster despite an arrest for marijuana possession. Hawkins should be back next year (once his broken leg heals and the medical redshirt comes off), along with Seabrooks and Zavackas and the rest of the Panther gang. As for coach Howland, he hasn't turned in his resignation just yet. But how much can one man take?

From The Sporting News:

Pitt Player Arrested on Assault Charges

Pitt Dismisses Reserve Forward

Pitt Player Faces Marijuana Charges

Taylor Dismissed from Pitt Team

Marijuana Charges Dismissed Against Pitt Player

From CBS Sportsline:

Pittsburgh Basketball Player Arrested On Assault Charges

Pitt Dismisses Reserve Forward

Coach Won't Dismiss Hawkins Despite Drug Arrest

Taylor Dismissed from Pitt Team

Marijuana Charges Dismissed Against Pitt Basketball Player

From CNN/SI:

Hawkins Arrested for Drug Possession

Pittsburg Dismisses Taylor

From the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette:

Pitt's Investigation Includes Zavackas

Zavackas Set to Return for Slumping Panthers

Pitt's Howland Dismisses Worrell from Team

Pitt's Howland Won't Dismiss Haskins

Taylor Dismissed from Pitt Team

Panthers Dismiss Taylor from Team

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