Kevin Tresolini

The News Journal

Threatt helped lead Hens to first CAA title and secured UD%27s first NCAA Tournament bid in 15 years

Junior season also included two disciplinary infractions

Delaware must now replace its top four scorers

NEWARK – The often spectacular but periodically interrupted University of Delaware basketball career of Jarvis Threatt has come to a premature end.

Delaware announced Tuesday that Threatt has been dismissed from the basketball team prior to what would have been his senior season for more UD rules violations.

UD offered no specifics in a short statement and would provide no comment, athletic director Eric Ziady said. A press release cited "violations of team rules."

Threatt had been a key member of Delaware's 2013-14 men's basketball team, which won the school's first Colonial Athletic Association championship and secured UD's first NCAA Tournament bid in 15 years. The Blue Hens finished 25-10.

A 6-foot-2 combo guard, Threatt was third on the team in scoring (18.0 ppg), third in rebounds (5.8 rpg) and first in assists (5.4) and steals (2.5). He was named Most Outstanding Player of the CAA Tournament.

But his junior year also included two disciplinary infractions. He was left home for an important Jan. 18 game at Northeastern by coach Monte Ross after missing a class.

Just over a week later, Threatt and teammate Marvin King-Davis were suspended from the team for a month, missing eight games, for a violation of unspecified UD athletics policy. Threatt returned for the final two games of the regular season and the postseason.

Threatt's impulsive behavior and relaxed attitude had often angered and tested the patience of his coaches, who thought they'd seen somewhat of a turn around this season despite the two transgressions.

"He is a talented young man who had a breakthrough on the court this year," Ross had said of Threatt before the NCAA Tournament game against Michigan State in Spokane, Wash. "He just decided he wanted to be the best he could be. The sky is still the limit for him."

Now, the sky has fallen. Threatt did not respond to an interview request. The Richmond, Va., resident is no longer a UD student.

Delaware must now replace its top four scorers – seniors Devon Saddler, Davon Usher and Carl Baptiste were the others – in 2014-15. Kyle Anderson, a senior guard, and King-Davis, a junior forward, will be the only recruited scholarship players in the junior and senior classes.

Threatt's departure means highly regarded incoming 6-2 freshman Kory Holden, from J.M. Bennett High in Salisbury, Md., will likely step right in at point guard next season. Anthony Mosely, another incoming freshman out of Sanford School, should also see immediate duty there. He is a 6-1 combo guard.

Other guards who'll have to pick up the scoring slack in Threatt's absence include 6-6 Devonne Pinkard and 6-4 Cazmon Hayes, who both saw considerable duty as true freshmen last year, and Chivarsky Corbett, a promising incoming 6-6 freshman swing guard from Tampa (Fla.) Catholic,

Threatt was a CAA All-Rookie selection as a freshman in 2011-12, when his late-season contributions helped push Delaware to its first winning season in eight years and he squared off against brother Jay in a game against Delaware State. He was third-team All-CAA in 2012-13.

Last month, during a visit to Vice President Biden's Naval Observatory residence in Washington, D.C., after a White House tour, Threatt had animatedly spoken about next season.

"It was a dream come true for me," he said of that trip. "Now I want to win the championship again next year and come back."

If the Blue Hens earn another D.C. expedition, it will be without a player some had considered as talented as any Delaware had.

Contact Kevin Tresolini at ktresolini@delawareonline.com.