Sophomore guard Curtis Jones has left the IU men's basketball program and will transfer to a different school next semester, the team announced Sunday in a release.
Jones had played in seven of IU's eight games this season, but didn't play against Duke on Wednesday and saw just three minutes in Saturday's loss at Michigan. The guard was averaging 3.0 points in 11 minutes per game.
"We appreciate Curtis' contributions and wish him nothing but the best in the future," IU Coach Archie Miller said in a statement.
Miller had used freshman guard Al Durham and sophomore guard Devonte Green far more than Jones in the backcourt rotation recently, so Jones' departure does not come as a major surprise. His mid-season departure means IU will have an extra scholarship spot open next semester.
A former four-star recruit that was ranked in the top 100 of the 2016 class by both 247Sports and ESPN, Jones kicked off his IU career with 15 points in a season-opening win against Kansas last year. He saw action in all but one game the rest of the season, but failed to make as much of an impact the rest of the way.
Jones finished his freshman year with 3.5 points per game in 33 appearances and shot 35 percent from deep. Without much change in his playing time under Miller this year, Jones decided to move on.
"I'm grateful to have had the opportunity to be a part of the IU basketball program and look forward to finding new situations where I can achieve the goals I have as a basketball player and as a student," Jones said.
Jake Thomer
