Auburn star Tahaad Pettiford arrested on DUI charge

Auburn basketball star Tahaad Pettiford was arrested on Saturday morning with a DUI charge in Lee County, Alabama, per jail logs obtained by ESPN.

The anticipated SEC Player of the Year contender for the upcoming season was released from jail midday and is no longer on the list as an inmate in the jail’s log, the outlet reported.

The incident comes just weeks after Pettiford withdrew from the NBA draft to rejoin the Tigers for his sophomore season, looking to prove he is ready for the next level.

“We are aware of the situation, and we will handle it internally with Tahaad and his family,” Auburn coach Bruce Pearl said in a statement to ESPN on Saturday. “We take these matters seriously and will learn and grow from it moving forward.”

In his freshman year, Pettiford averaged 11.6 points per game while shooting 42.1 percent from the field across an average 22.9 minutes.

He was a key member of an Auburn team that went on to reach the Final Four last season, averaging 15.2 points in the five tournament games.

The Jersey City native will be a big highlight of the team’s next chapter after star Johni Broome was selected by the 76ers at 35th overall.

“I was happy to go through the process, getting feedback from NBA teams,” Pettiford told ESPN at the time of leaving the draft. “Going back to Auburn is a better situation for me. I see myself being a higher pick next year. It wasn’t 100 percent this year, so I didn’t want to take that chance.”

Pettiford wasn’t a part of the big freshman conversation throughout last season, but for the upcoming year, he is on a short list of players as a possible preseason All-American.

In the past, Pearl has applauded Pettiford’s team-player mentality when it came to accepting his place and playing time among a team of veterans.

“I suppose some would just sort of expect that to be a problem,” Pearl said about Pettiford’s situation in April. “Not a word. Not a body language, shoulder shrug, roll eye ever from Tahaad.”