Ohio State will be without its freshman point guard for the foreseeable future.
DJ Carton will be "taking some time away" from the basketball team to "deal with personal matters," the program announced on Thursday evening. He will not play in Saturday's game versus Indiana, per a team spokesman.
“D.J. remains a valued member of our program and we will continue to love and support him,” Chris Holtmann said in a press release. “Please respect the family’s privacy in this matter.”
Shortly after Ohio State announced that Carton plans to step away from the team, he released his own statement, referencing the mental health battles he has undergone.
"I have been suffering with mental health issues for a couple years," Carton said in his statement. "I have been through a lot. I'm disappointed to say I'm not 100% right now. I am not doing my teammates justice if I don't work on this now. I am doing everything in my power to strengthen my mental health. I will fight for my team and buckeye nation and I will come back stronger!"
Love my team and Ohio pic.twitter.com/Sjb3C9sZbJ
— DJ Carton (@DJCarton) January 31, 2020
Neither the program nor Carton released any details about when he's expected to return to the team. Both requested privacy for him and his family.
Carton has played in all 20 games this season, starting three of them and averaging 23.9 minutes. In his first year as a Buckeye, he averages 10.4 points, three assists and 2.8 rebounds per game.
Without Carton in the lineup on Saturday, redshirt junior CJ Walker will be the only true point guard on Ohio State's roster. He averages 7.5 points, 3.1 assists and 2.9 rebounds per game. Beyond the team captain, Duane Washington Jr. will likely be counted on to take some of the ball-handling duties.
