The Western Athletic Conference on Monday deemed the rest of New Mexico State’s men’s basketball games as forfeits after the program canceled the season over an alleged hazing incident.
The forfeits will be used for conference standings and seasons because the NCAA does not recognize forfeited games in a team’s overall record. The Aggies had six games remaining on the schedule before their team’s season was canceled.
“While there is no perfect solution to this unfortunate situation, I believe we landed in the right place,” WAC Commissioner Brian Thornton said in a statement. “I applaud our Athletic Directors for working collaboratively with our staff to reach this decision.
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“We are in the midst of the best statistical season in the WAC’s history, and we wanted to create the most equitable solution that did not unfairly advantage or disadvantage institutions that lost opportunities to improve their standing. Ultimately, every institution will maintain the ability to control their destiny based on the results of their remaining conference contests.”
New Mexico State canceled the season after a police report alleged that three players ganged up on a teammate and attacked him in a case that includes allegations of false imprisonment and criminal sexual contact.
University regents are set to hold a closed meeting to discuss “limited personnel matters concerning individual employees.” Coach Greg Hair and his staff on administrative leave at the same time chancellor Dan Arvizu suspended the season.
NEW MEXICO STATE MEN’S BASKETBALL PROGRAM SUSPENDED INDEFINITELY AFTER REPORTS OF HAZING: CHANCELLOR
The university has not shared any details on the alleged hazing incidents or the names of those accused of participating.
The suspension comes at a troubling time in the Aggies program after a Nov. 19 shooting on the Albuquerque campus of rival University of New Mexico left 21-year-old Peake injured and 19-year-old UNM student Brandon Travis dead.
Police reported that Travis and three other UNM students, including a 17-year-old girl, lured Peake to campus hours before the rivalry game.
Surveillance footage released by New Mexico State Police in December showed three people approach the basketball player from behind before hitting him in the legs with a baseball bat and shooting him in the left leg. Peake can then be seen pulling out a gun and firing several shots, which struck Travis and resulted in his death.
Three of Peake’s teammates, later identified as Issa Muhammad, Marchelus Avery and Anthony Roy, picked him up from the scene and took him to a hospital.
The game was initially rescheduled for the following day, but was postponed to Dec. 3 and moved to Las Cruces. It was ultimately canceled.
Peake was indefinitely suspended from the team two days later while his involvement in the shooting was investigated. As of February, he is not facing criminal charges in connection with the shooting.
Fox News’ Elizabeth Pritchett and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
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