Halifax basketball standout Tyler Richards appears to have played his last game for the St. Francis Xavier X-Men.
The four-time first-team AUS all-star has been told by school administration he will not be in uniform at the Final 8 Canadian Interuniversity Sport championship at Scotiabank Place in Ottawa this weekend. The ruling also stands for Richards’ teammates, Eamon Morrissy and William Donkoh.
The three X-Men were charged on March 1 with assault causing bodily harm and will appear in court on May 4. A St. FX investigation into the matter is ongoing.
All three were out of the lineup when the X-Men lost to the Dalhousie Tigers in Sunday’s AUS final.
“Nothing has changed since last week — they will remain out of uniform this weekend,” said St. FX athletic director Leo MacPherson. “I was waiting to see how the internal investigation had progressed, but there is no new information.”
The players can still practice with the team and will travel to Ottawa to sit on the bench in street clothes.
Richards, a fifth-year, six-foot-two guard, is one of the most decorated players in AUS history. He finished his career with 1,526 points in 96 games, placing him 13th on the conference’s all-time list and second to Fred Perry in St. FX history.
MacPherson said his decision on the Final 8 will only change if the internal investigation wraps up before the tournament starts, a scenario he called “highly unlikely.”
The X-Men are seeded eighth for the Final 8 and will face the No. 1-ranked Carleton Ravens on Friday at 9 p.m.
