Post by MizzouTiger on Jan 28, 2008 18:59:19 GMT -5
www.columbiatribune.com/2008/Jan/20080128News001.asp
Basketball star hurt at bar
MU’s Hannah recovering after jaw fractured in fight.
By STEVE WALENTIK of the Tribune’s staff
Published Monday, January 28, 2008
University of Missouri senior basketball player Stefhon Hannah was listed in good condition this morning at University Hospital after undergoing surgery to repair a fractured jaw he suffered in a fight outside a downtown nightclub early yesterday morning.
Columbia police Sgt. Don Hawkins said Hannah was involved in a disturbance outside Athena Night Club at 1100 Locust St. Police arrived at the scene shortly after receiving a report at 1:07 a.m. and followed Hannah to the hospital, where they interviewed him.
"He comes out of the bar, sees a disturbance, gets caught up in the middle of it, and - and these are his words - as he was backing out of it, he was hit in the head with an unknown object by an unknown person," Hawkins said.
The 20 to 30 people the police found outside the nightclub when they arrived did not provide details of the incident.
"Nobody knew anything about anything, so it’s a real who-done-it, I guess you could say," Hawkins said. "We’d like to help, but if they don’t tell us anything, there’s not much we can do for them. … There’s no suspect information. We don’t really know what the disturbance was about or who was even involved."
Calls made to Athena went unanswered, and nightclub owner Daniel Veros did not respond to a message.
A hospital spokesperson confirmed Hannah’s condition but would not provide further details. A news release by the MU athletic department indicated Hannah is expected to miss four to six weeks.
MU head basketball Coach Mike Anderson was told of the incident during an early morning phone call.
"I got a chance yesterday to see him after he came out of the surgery with the broken jaw," Anderson said during this morning’s Big 12 men’s basketball coaches’ teleconference. "The surgery went well, and Stef’s doing well. … That’s, right now, the most important thing. That’s where my thoughts are."
Anderson said he is trying to gather information about the incident.
Hannah, last year’s Big 12 Conference newcomer of the year, had returned to Columbia less than five hours earlier, after the Tigers’ 66-62 victory against Colorado on Saturday afternoon in Boulder. He scored 13 points and handed out five assists in the game as the Tigers earned their first road victory of the season.
Hannah averaged a team-leading 14.7 points through the first 20 games and also led the Tigers in assists and steals.
This was not the first time a current member of the Missouri basketball program was caught up in an incident outside a bar. Junior forward DeMarre Carroll was shot in the ankle in July outside Club Tropicana. That incident led Anderson to institute a zero-tolerance policy for players involved in similar incidents. He also instituted a curfew for players.
Two days after Carroll was shot, forward Kalen Grimes, the Tigers’ leading rebounder last season, was arrested and charged with second-degree felony assault for allegedly striking a man with the butt of a shotgun during an early morning altercation in the parking lot of a Dairy Queen in north St. Louis County. Anderson dismissed Grimes from the team.
Senior forward Darryl Butterfield was arrested on Oct. 17 and charged with peace disturbance by fighting, a Class B misdemeanor, after he allegedly hit his girlfriend with a fist during a dispute at his apartment. Butterfield, who was suspended for the Tigers’ first exhibition game, pleaded guilty and was given a suspended six-month jail sentence with two years unsupervised probation. He was also ordered to undergo 20 hours of anger management.
Anderson’s son, junior guard Michael Anderson Jr., was arrested last February on suspicion of driving while intoxicated and was suspended.
"We’ve dealt with those situations, and each situation was independent," said Anderson, who disagreed with the assertion that the incidents showed a lack of discipline in his program. "It was different in each situation. I think that’s how you deal with it. I don’t consider it a problem. … To me, it’s a culture that’s taking place, and you’ve got to clean it up. It’s as simple as that."
Basketball star hurt at bar
MU’s Hannah recovering after jaw fractured in fight.
By STEVE WALENTIK of the Tribune’s staff
Published Monday, January 28, 2008
University of Missouri senior basketball player Stefhon Hannah was listed in good condition this morning at University Hospital after undergoing surgery to repair a fractured jaw he suffered in a fight outside a downtown nightclub early yesterday morning.
Columbia police Sgt. Don Hawkins said Hannah was involved in a disturbance outside Athena Night Club at 1100 Locust St. Police arrived at the scene shortly after receiving a report at 1:07 a.m. and followed Hannah to the hospital, where they interviewed him.
"He comes out of the bar, sees a disturbance, gets caught up in the middle of it, and - and these are his words - as he was backing out of it, he was hit in the head with an unknown object by an unknown person," Hawkins said.
The 20 to 30 people the police found outside the nightclub when they arrived did not provide details of the incident.
"Nobody knew anything about anything, so it’s a real who-done-it, I guess you could say," Hawkins said. "We’d like to help, but if they don’t tell us anything, there’s not much we can do for them. … There’s no suspect information. We don’t really know what the disturbance was about or who was even involved."
Calls made to Athena went unanswered, and nightclub owner Daniel Veros did not respond to a message.
A hospital spokesperson confirmed Hannah’s condition but would not provide further details. A news release by the MU athletic department indicated Hannah is expected to miss four to six weeks.
MU head basketball Coach Mike Anderson was told of the incident during an early morning phone call.
"I got a chance yesterday to see him after he came out of the surgery with the broken jaw," Anderson said during this morning’s Big 12 men’s basketball coaches’ teleconference. "The surgery went well, and Stef’s doing well. … That’s, right now, the most important thing. That’s where my thoughts are."
Anderson said he is trying to gather information about the incident.
Hannah, last year’s Big 12 Conference newcomer of the year, had returned to Columbia less than five hours earlier, after the Tigers’ 66-62 victory against Colorado on Saturday afternoon in Boulder. He scored 13 points and handed out five assists in the game as the Tigers earned their first road victory of the season.
Hannah averaged a team-leading 14.7 points through the first 20 games and also led the Tigers in assists and steals.
This was not the first time a current member of the Missouri basketball program was caught up in an incident outside a bar. Junior forward DeMarre Carroll was shot in the ankle in July outside Club Tropicana. That incident led Anderson to institute a zero-tolerance policy for players involved in similar incidents. He also instituted a curfew for players.
Two days after Carroll was shot, forward Kalen Grimes, the Tigers’ leading rebounder last season, was arrested and charged with second-degree felony assault for allegedly striking a man with the butt of a shotgun during an early morning altercation in the parking lot of a Dairy Queen in north St. Louis County. Anderson dismissed Grimes from the team.
Senior forward Darryl Butterfield was arrested on Oct. 17 and charged with peace disturbance by fighting, a Class B misdemeanor, after he allegedly hit his girlfriend with a fist during a dispute at his apartment. Butterfield, who was suspended for the Tigers’ first exhibition game, pleaded guilty and was given a suspended six-month jail sentence with two years unsupervised probation. He was also ordered to undergo 20 hours of anger management.
Anderson’s son, junior guard Michael Anderson Jr., was arrested last February on suspicion of driving while intoxicated and was suspended.
"We’ve dealt with those situations, and each situation was independent," said Anderson, who disagreed with the assertion that the incidents showed a lack of discipline in his program. "It was different in each situation. I think that’s how you deal with it. I don’t consider it a problem. … To me, it’s a culture that’s taking place, and you’ve got to clean it up. It’s as simple as that."