Maryland point guard Howard arrested

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COLLEGE PARK, Md., April 30 (UPI) -- Maryland Terrapins point guard Pe'Shon Howard was charged with disorderly conduct after police said he "taunted" someone outside a cafe near the university.

Capt. Marc Limansky, University or Maryland Police spokesman, said Howard was issued a citation about 2:25 a.m. Saturday outside the Shanghai Cafe in College Park, the university newspaper the Diamondback reported.

Police had responded to patrons who reported a fight outside the cafe but Limansky said he didn't know whether Howard was involved in the fight.

"We had the aggressor [in the fight] sit down outside to calm down, and at that point Mr. Howard began taunting the individual, trying to get him riled up again," Limansky said. "Officers told [Howard] to stop what he was doing, but he continued to do it, at which point we placed him into custody."

If convicted, Howard faces a maximum penalty of two months in jail and a $500 fine.

Howard said in a phone interview Sunday he did not provoke anyone or try to start a fight.

"They thought that I was instigating," said Howard, a Los Angeles native. "But people around me said I wasn't. I was speaking to the cops, and that was it."

Howard, a sophomore, averaged 6.5 points and 3.7 assists in 14 games this season.

He had missed the first two months of the season because of a broken foot and missed the final month after tearing his ACL in a February practice.