Feb. 20--Illinois coach John Groce said Saturday he is taking the felony aggravated assault charge against sophomore forward Leron Black seriously.
Black was arrested early Friday morning after being accused of pulling a knife on a security employee at a Champaign nightclub. The Illini play at Wisconsin on Sunday.
Black has been suspended indefinitely. He has played in only seven games this season due to a knee injury.
"For us, the most important thing is to honor the legal process and to allow itself to take its course," Groce said. "At the same time, in terms of my thoughts on it and where it stands right now, one this is not representative of obviously what we want to be about or even what he's about as I've gotten to know him and have a deep relationship with him now for some time. It's not a true reflection of what I've seen prior with his character. He's been an outstanding young man to this point."
He declined to answer other questions about disciplining Black.
sryan@tribune.com
