Hollowell, Etherington to transfer

At least five players who started the season at Indiana are leaving or have left the program.

Six-foot-10 freshman Noah Vonleh of Haverhill, Mass., is headed to the NBA while redshirt sophomore Austin Etherington of Hamilton Heights and sophomore Jeremy Hollowell of Lawrence Central both will transfer.

Walk-on guard Jonny Marlin also is transferring, a source confirmed to Peegs.com. Marlin, who was on scholarship at IPFW, is from Center Grove.

Six-foot-10 center Luke Fischer of Wisconsin left at the semester break to transfer to Marquette.

Hollowell, a 6-8 wing, played in 62 games and started 15 this past season. He averaged 4.2 points and 2.7 rebounds and shot 36.8 percent from the field and 22.6 percent from 3-point range. In Big Ten play, he averaged 3.6 points and shot 1-for-9 from the arc.

Etherington, a 6-6 forward, was a member of the program for three years and appeared in 53 games scoring 93 points and averaged 1.8 points and shot 37.7 percent from the field and 25 percent from the arc.

"Austin told me this past Saturday night that he would like to take advantage of graduating in May and continue to play by relocating to another University," Crean said. "He is going to be a three-year graduate and wants an opportunity to look for somewhere he can have a larger role. Even though that is his choice, we are going to miss him. He is a fine young man."

Etherington will be the 21st Tom Crean recruit to earn a degree, IU said.

"I would like to thank Coach Crean and the entire coaching staff for helping me to realize my childhood dream of playing basketball at Indiana and graduating from such a prestigious University," Etherington said in a statement.

"My experiences on and off the court are memories that I will never forget. After talking with my family, I have decided to move forward with the next chapter in my life. After graduating in May, I will pursue other options for my remaining two years of eligibility. I will forever be a Hoosier at heart and will always cherish the memories and friendships I have made at IU. Thanks to everyone who has helped me along the way."

Hollowell had to sit out games as both a freshman and a sophomore for various issues.

"Jeremy has indicated to us that he would like to transfer to pursue another college opportunity," Crean said. "We have put a lot of time and effort into Jeremy, both on and off the court and it is our expectation that he finish strong in school and adhere to team rules.

"We will be there to provide any help we can give to him to find another program. We hope he realizes his full potential and we believe we did everything over the last two years to help make that happen."

Said Hollowell: "I have learned a lot from my time at Indiana. My time here has made me much stronger as a person. Things don't always go as planned and I am looking forward to getting a fresh start and I hope to make the most of that opportunity.

"I want to thank coach Crean for believing in me and giving me the opportunity to play at IU. He has taught me a lot and has always wanted the best for me. I want to thank all the coaches and all the staff for being there for me. I want to thank the fans for their great support and I want to thank my former teammates for taking me under their wing. I want to thank my present teammates and I wish them all the best."