Toatley off UTC basketball team
When the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men take the basketball court next season, they will be without three of the team’s top four scorers from 2018.
Freshman point guard Donovann Toatley is the latest to exit after coach Lamont Paris confirmed Tuesday that Toatley will no longer be a part of the team. Toatley was serving an indefinite suspension for a violation of team rules following the Mocs’ final game in the Southern Conference tournament. It was his second suspension of the year.
“Donovann will no longer be on the team,” Paris said. “I like the kid and I wish him the best, and he’ll get another chance to make better decisions. He just needs to continue to mature.”
Toatley, a guard from Maryland, was UTC’s second-leading scorer this past season at 11.2 points per game on 42% field-goal shooting. He also led the team in assists with 82 and turnovers with 69 and played a total of 698 minutes in 28 games.
Toatley’s departure is the third since the end of the season. Leading scorer Kevin Easley announced last month he is transferring, while guard Jerry Johnson Jr. is seeking a graduate transfer at the team’s request.
Toatley’s and Johnson’s absences will thin the Mocs’ options at guard. The only other players with minutes at the position are starter David Jean-Baptiste (9.7 points per game), freshman reserve Maurice Commander and early-season transfer A.J. Caldwell.
“We will be on the lookout for guards,” Paris said. “There will be some opportunity for guys in the program. Maurice Commander is a prime example. He had an injury and didn’t play a ton of minutes, but he did some good things for us. Also, it’s an opportunity for guys that did play minutes to have their roles expand like Dave.”
Johnson started each of the team’s 32 games this past season and averaged 9.9 points and 3.5 rebounds while shooting 38.3% and finishing second to Toatley with 74 assists. Johnson’s 55
made 3-pointers led the team. Easley, Johnson and Toatley combined to play more than 2,300 minutes.
“We weren’t anticipating having to do this, but we still have a great core coming back,” Paris said. “We’re really excited about that. The guys have been working hard already, and their mindset seems to be different. If we can make a couple of nice additions to that, it can be a great thing.”