UConn Star Arrested For Drugs

April 13, 1999 / 8:02 PM EDT / AP

Connecticut basketball star Khalid El-Amin was arrested Tuesday and charged with possession of marijuana.

The sophomore point guard was picked up on a Hartford street, police said. El-Amin was hustled out of a police substation in the city's North End, just after 6 p.m., and taken to the main police station to be booked.

About a dozen teen-agers had gathered at the substation on news of the arrest. They cheered as El-Amin eluded reporters and jumped into the car.

Tim Tolokan, UConn's sports information director, said the school had no knowledge of the arrest, and no further comment.

The 5-foot-10 point guard helped the Huskies (36-2) to their first national championship with a 77-74 victory over top-ranked Duke last month. It was the school's first trip to the Final Four.

El-Amin announced last week that he would return to UConn for his junior season rather than make himself eligible for the NBA draft.

El-Amin has been a starter in 71 games and became the third UConn player to reach 1,000 points as a sophomore.

For the past two seasons, he has averaged 14.9 points and 4.1 assists. He finished second on the team this season in scoring at 13.8 points a game and led the squad in assists with 140.

El-Amin was voted to the NCAA Final Four all-tournament team after scoring 30 points and handing out 10 assists in wins over Ohio State in the semifinals and Duke in the title game.

El-Amin's arrest came one day after Minneapolis North High School in Minnesota retired his jersey. El-Amin graduated from North in 1997 after leading the Polars to three consecutive state high school basketball championships.