Memphis' Robinson, Taggart arrested after early morning fight

MEMPHIS, Tenn. -- Two Memphis players were arrested early Sunday after a fight outside a club on historic Beale Street in the downtown entertainment district just a few yards away from the arena the Tigers routinely sell out.

Jeff Robinson, a 6-foot-5 freshman from New Jersey, and Shawn Taggart, a 6-10 sophomore from Virginia, were each booked shortly before 6 a.m. Robinson was charged with inciting a riot, assault-bodily harm and disorderly conduct. Taggart was charged with inciting a riot and disorderly conduct. Both are due in court on Tuesday at 8:30 a.m.

Memphis coach John Calipari addressed the situation Sunday afternoon and said he planned to meet with both players later in the day before deciding how either will be punished. Clearly frustrated, Calipari said he held a meeting with Taggart's and Robinson's teammates Sunday morning during which he implemented a no-bar/no-club policy that will apply to the entire team for the foreseeable future and is effective immediately.

"I know they're going to screw up because they're young kids and they're going to do dumb things, like my own children," Calipari said. "But how many times have I said that nothing good happens in a club after midnight?"

Memphis is No. 1 in the CBSSports.com preseason college basketball rankings. The Tigers return seven of their top eight scorers from last season's team that advanced to the Elite Eight of the NCAA Tournament and finished 33-4, and though neither Robinson nor Taggart are projected starters, they are each expected to be in the regular rotation off the bench.

Sunday's arrests cap a strange weekend for Conference USA, one that also featured five UAB basketball players being arrested early Friday after a fight at a bar in Birmingham. Among those arrested was Robert Vaden, a transfer from Indiana who is a former Big Ten Freshman of the Year award winner.