Five Duquesne basketball players were shot Sunday morning on the school’s Pittsburgh campus, putting two of the players in critical condition, according to The Associated Press.
Sam Ashaolu and Stuard Baldonado are the most severely injured of the five, the AP reported. Shawn James, the nation’s leading shot blocker at Northeastern who transferred to Duquesne this year, was released from Mercy Hospital in Pittsburgh. Kojo Mensah and Aaron Jackson were also released, according to the AP.
James is the team’s NBA prospect and is not eligible until the 2007-2008 season. He was shot in the foot but no bones are believed to be broken, the AP reported.
The shootings occurred around 2:15 a.m. as the players were sitting on a bench near their dormitory. According to the AP, the players were returning from a campus social function.
The wire service also reported that police were searching Sunday for a non-student suspected in the shootings.
Jackson is one of two players returning from last year’s team. Danny Nee, who served as head coach for five years, was fired after never achieving a winning season.
Ron Everhart, a former Northeastern assistant, brought in 10 new recruits to the historically lackluster program. Duquesne is one of the Colonials conference opponents.
