Four Kent State men’s basketball players have received disciplinary action by the Mid-American Conference after an explicit video was posted after the Flashes’ semifinal win over Ohio Friday night. 

The video surfaced after redshirt junior forward DJ Johnson posted a video of him and three other players saying, “F- – – Akron,” in the locker room after Friday’s game to his snapchat. In the video, Johnson uses a rap song to diss the Zips’ and calls out several players by name and jersey number, saying phrases such as , “F- – – Ali Ali.” Ali is a sophomore guard at Akron. 

Johnson has been suspended indefinitely, while redshirt junior guard Malique Jacobs, freshman center Cli’Ron Hornbeak and freshman guard Julius Rollins have been suspended for the first half of the championship game. 

Jacobs will be a crucial loss for the Flashes. He is second on the team in points, averaging 12.5 per game, and is an anchor of KSU’s high-powered defense, leading the team in rebounds, with almost eight per game, and steals, 48 this season. He is second in blocks with 24. 

Johnson averages 13.6 minutes on the court per game and Hornbeak averages 6.4. Rollins has not appeared in a game this season as he is redshirting his freshman season. 

The MAC commissioner released a statement via Twitter.

“I’m disappointed this occurred,” Jon Steinbrecher said in a statement. “This doesn’t represent the values of Kent State or the Mid-American Conference. However, I commend the leadership of Kent State for being proactive in addressing this matter and collaborating with my office to bring this situation to resolution.”

Kent State also released a statement via Twitter prior to the MAC’s statement. 

“We are aware of a video posted by a member of the men’s basketball team. The behavior in the video does not reflect the core values of Kent State, nor does it live up to the standards we expect of our student-athletes. We are reviewing this matter and appropriate action will be taken, which may include the suspension of players. We expect all members of our Kent State community to act in accordance with our values and behavior to the contrary will not be tolerated.”

Kent State will play Akron in the championship game tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Rocket Mortgage Field House. The winner takes the MAC title and will earn a spot in the NCAA tournament. 

Jacob Hansen is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].