Illinois forward Leron Black arrested, suspended indefinitely from team

By foxsports
Published

Illinois sophomore forward Leron Black was arrested and charged with aggravated assault for allegedly pulling a knife on a bouncer at Champaign night club on Thursday night, according to Mary Schnek of the News-Gazette. 

Illinois head coach John Groce announced on Friday that Black, who has not played since Dec. 5, has been suspended indefinitely from all team activities as the legal process gets underway.

According to the News-Gazette, Thursday night's incident occurred after Black and the group he was with was removed from the Canopy Club. This sparked a confrontation between the establishment's security staff member and Black.

[University of Illinois Police Lt. Tom] Geis said the security guard told police that Black and others were inside the club and that security was trying to remove people when “Black became very belligerent and hostile toward the security guard,” Geis said.

“(Black) yelled ‘I don’t have a strap but I’m not afraid to cut somebody,’ ” Geis said. “Then the security guard said he pulled the knife, opened it and put it within 1 to 2 inches of his nose.”

Black has missed the past 17 games for the Fighting Illini due to a knee injury. He was averaging 3.9 points and 3.9 rebounds per game.

(h/t News-Gazette)