Penn Athletics announced today that junior guard Tony Hicks was suspended by coach Jerome Allen for Penn’s games at Harvard and Dartmouth this weekend. The Daily Pennsylvanian reports that Hicks did not travel with the team to New England.
Observers say Hicks twisted the hand of a Brown player in what appeared to be a sign of poor sportsmanship, which followed Hicks getting charged with a technical foul with 6:22 remaining in a 71-55 home loss to Brown for arguing with an official.
“Tony did some things during and immediately following last Saturday’s game against Brown that did not meet the standards of the Penn basketball program,” Allen said in a statement. “After reviewing the incidents earlier this week, I have decided to sit him for this weekend’s games. I have spoken to Tony and the team about the situation, and they will learn from this. We look forward to having him back on the court next weekend.”
This marks the third time in as many seasons Hicks has been suspended by Allen. Last season, Hicks was suspended a game for swinging at and connecting with Columbia’s then-junior guard Meiko Lyles in a 74-55 blowout loss at Columbia.
In Dec. 2012, Hicks was one of five Quakers suspended for reportedly failing drug tests.
The last thing this program needed was another disciplinary bump in the road after Henry Brooks and Julian Harrell parted ways with the program and Tony Bagtas was arrested for 10 on-campus burglaries and took a leave of absence from the university.
Look, I’d be upset too if I were Hicks. Penn is 24-56 in his three seasons with the program, so he’s lost 70 percent of his collegiate games. He’s shot 6-for-32 in the past three games. He’s had at least four turnovers in 10 of Penn’s 21 outings this season. All the numbers are going against him, and now that he’s team captain, he’s pressing even more.
Hicks knows this isn’t getting better, and so does anyone watching.