Portland State players Scott Morrison and Jeremiah Dominguez held in Mexico after altercation

4/1/2008 9:01 PM

By ANNE M. PETERSON
Associated Press Writer

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) -Two Portland State basketball players are in a Mexican jail after an altercation in the resort town of Cabos San Lucas, U.S. consular officials confirmed Tuesday night.

Scott Morrison and Jeremiah Dominguez have not been charged, but Lorena Blanco, spokeswoman for the consulate in Tijuana, said a list of attorneys' names has been sent to the players' families.

Blanco said Morrison beat up Kyle Meagher, 23, of Michigan, and Dominguez attempted to flee police.

``Dominguez was the not the one who beat him up but he ran away from police and that's what got him in trouble ... Police threw him on the ground and punched him because he resisted arrest,'' Blanco told The Associated Press.

An AP reporter went to the police holding area where the two were behind bars. They declined comment.

Seated on a cement bench in a cell with five other prisoners, they had no apparent wounds on their hands. Police arrested both men early Monday, said municipal police commander Alonso Valencia Cabrales.

``The altercation took place in a tourist area in front of the Zoo disco,'' Valencia said. ``The two were arrested and are under the jurisdiction of the Public Ministry where they are accused of damages.''

Jose Manuel Garcia, the chief of operations at Balboa Hospital & Walk-In Clinic in Cabo San Lucas, told The Associated Press doctors performed surgery on Meagher because his jaw was destroyed.

``We had to insert two plates and eight titanium screws,'' Garcia said. He added that the Meagher's family was in the resort town and had filed a police report.

The Oregonian newspaper said Meagher is a student at Lansing (Mich.) Community College.

Dominguez and Morrison helped the Vikings to a school-record 23-10 season and their first appearance in the NCAA tournament. Portland State earned a trip to the tournament with a 67-51 victory over Northern Arizona in the Big Sky Conference tournament. The Vikings also won the league's regular-season title.

The Vikings were a No. 16 seed in the NCAA tournament, where they lost to top-seeded Kansas in a first-round game.

Dominguez, a 5-foot-6 point guard, was the Big Sky's player of the year, after he averaged 14.2 points and 4.1 assists per game. The 6-11 Morrison, the league's defensive player of the year, averaged 10.4 points and 5.8 rebounds.

``We are surprised and disappointed in the actions and poor judgment our student athletes have shown in this situation,'' athletic director Torre Chisolm said. ``Prior to this, they conducted themselves in a positive manner within our program. I am disheartened to see them put themselves in such a bad position.''

AP Reporter Ignacio Martinez in Cabo San Lucas contributed to this report