MU reinstates D’Angelo Allen, Jakeenan Gant to basketball team

Missouri kicks off the Kim Anderson era Monday with its first men’s basketball practice of the 2014-15 season.

But there was some house-cleaning to do when Anderson, who was hired in April after Frank Haith left abruptly for Tulsa, met with reporters Wednesday for a preseason news conference.

Anderson announced that freshmen D’Angelo Allen, a 6-foot-7 forward from Dallas, and Jakeenan Gant, a 6-8 forward from Springfield, Ga., had been reinstated.

Allen and Gant were suspended from team activities roughly two weeks ago after they were arrested and cited on suspicion of assault in the early morning hours on Sept. 14. They were released and given a summons for municipal court. A county prosecutor is reviewing possible charges.

“They have both returned and are practicing and working out with the team,” Anderson said. “In order to return, they had to fulfill some things that we wanted them to do in regards to character development, in regards to community service, in regards to basketball conditioning.

“They fulfilled those and, as a matter of fact, have surpassed our expectations.”

Meanwhile, the Tigers announced Tuesday that sophomore Cam Biedscheid, a 6-7 shooting guard from St. Louis who transferred from Notre Dame in the middle of last season, was leaving the program.

“In regards to Cam Biedscheid, who is no longer with our basketball program, that was a decision that was made (Tuesday),” Anderson said. “The opportunity is for him to deal with some personal issues and concentrate on some things that he needs to concentrate on, so he’ll no longer be a part of our team.”

When Biedscheid was brought in, the hope was that he could take over part of the scoring load after the departure of last season’s three leading scorers — Jabari Brown, Jordan Clarkson and Earnest Ross.

Beginning Monday, Anderson is glad to have his first offseason, which also included shooting guard Shane Rector’s transfer in May and the dismissal of forward Torren Jones in August, behind him.

“I’m looking forward to moving forward and coaching the guys that are here,” Anderson said. “I’m proud of what I think we’ve accomplished since June, and I’m excited about the group of guys that are here.”

Anderson said his biggest roster concerns were a lack of perimeter shooting and depth inside, but he feels more settled about the former than the latter.

“As we go further along and as we work out more and as we spend more time with these guys, that’s probably not as big a concern as it was back in June,” Anderson said of the Tigers’ potential from long-range.

The same can’t be said for the lack of depth behind senior Keanau Post and junior Ryan Rosburg in the post.

“After that, you’re kind of mixing and matching with (sophomore forward) Johnathan Williams III and (freshman forward) Jakeenan Gant,” Anderson said. “We’re not real deep. Hayden Barnard’s a walk-on who’s kind of helped us out a little bit.”

Post averaged 1.5 points and 1.7 rebounds last season, while Rosburg averaged 4.8 points and 4.1 rebounds.

Williams averaged 5.8 points and was the Tigers’ leading rebounder at 6.5 per game, but he’s been sidelined most of September because of a partially torn meniscus in his right knee.

Still, Missouri’s bigs know the onus is on them to get better and Post said he’s ready to step up: “Yeah, I feel like that’s going to have to happen, but Ryan’s going to have to step it up also along with (Williams). … We’re working, and I don’t think it’s going to be an issue.”

▪ Missouri has indefinitely suspended an assistant athletic director who handles media relations for the basketball team after he was arrested on suspicion of driving while intoxicated and speeding.

Dave Reiter, 36, was arrested at 1:33 a.m. Wednesday in Lafayette County by the Missouri Highway Patrol. He was taken to the Odessa jail and released.

This story was originally published October 1, 2014 at 7:19 PM with the headline "MU reinstates D’Angelo Allen, Jakeenan Gant to basketball team."