Thornwell suspension could last multiple games

South Carolina announced on Sunday that senior guard Sindarius Thornwell has been suspended indefinitely because of a violation of athletics department policy.

The details behind the decision weren’t released, with coach Frank Martin saying he would walk out of his postgame news conference after Sunday’s win over Florida International if asked about the situation. Thornwell went through warmups with the team and sat on the bench during the game.

A source indicated to The State that Thornwell will be suspended for multiple games. He could return by the start of conference play.

Justin McKie took Thornwell’s place in the starting lineup. The Gamecocks improved to 8-0 with a 70-54 win over the Golden Panthers.

The 6-foot-5, 211-pound senior from Lancaster earned SEC Player of the Week honors last week after averaging 18.5 points, eight rebounds, four assists and two steals in wins over No. 25 Michigan and No. 18 Syracuse. He is USC’s leading scorer (18.7 points per game) and averages 6.7 rebounds and 4.1 assists.

USC was ranked 20th this week, its seventh top 25 spot in the past 17 weeks. The Gamecocks are idle until Dec. 12 because of exams, and then will play Seton Hall at Madison Square Garden. The Pirates (5-2) play two games before meeting USC in New York.

Thornwell posted to his Instagram account Sunday morning: “All In, Together we stand!!!! It’s gameday!!!!!”

This story was originally published December 4, 2016 at 7:07 PM with the headline "Thornwell suspension could last multiple games."