ISU men’s basketball player Tim Barnes will be academically ineligible for the first semester of the 2003-04 season, head coach Wayne Morgan announced Thursday.

Barnes, a senior who started all but one game at point guard for the Cyclones last season, transferred to Iowa State from Southeastern Illinois Community College in 2002. He was the third-leading scorer for the Cyclones as a junior, averaging 11.3 points per game and nailing 57 three-pointers.

Barnes also had the top Cyclone numbers in assists, averaging 5.0 per game, and had the most steals on the team with 40.

Iowa State went 17-14 last season, losing to Iowa in the first round of the National Invitation Tournament.

Thursday’s announcement isn’t the only challenge Barnes is facing going into his senior season.

Morgan suspended Barnes from the team after he was arrested June 24 on drunken driving and marijuana possession charges.

Morgan could not comment on Barnes’ academic situation, because student academic records are private.

The fall semester ends Dec. 19. If Barnes becomes eligible after the fall semester, he could play as early as Dec. 20, when the Cyclones play Drake in Des Moines. He will miss the team’s first five games of the season.