Baldonado was one of five Duquesne University students shot Sept. 17 after an on-campus dance. The 6-foot-7 player was shot in the arm, where the bullet severed an artery in his left elbow and traveled through his back and just missed his spine.

Baldonado, 22, was arrested Friday in Pittsburgh and charged with criminal conspiracy involving the manufacture, delivery or possession of a controlled substance, according to online records of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas.

Baldonado left municipal court today without commenting. Police accuse Baldonado of being a lookout while another man sold a half-pound of marijuana.

A hearing in the case was scheduled for Sept. 13.

Coach Ron Everhart said yesterday in a news release that the university had suspended Baldonado because of an apparent violation of the university's code of student rights, responsibilities and conduct. He but did not say what prompted the suspension.

"Our basketball players are held to the same standard of accountability as the general student population," Everhart wrote. "We fully expect them to adhere to university policies and procedures at all times."

The university did not immediately return a call last night seeking further comment on the news release.

Baldonado, a native of Colombia, was Duquesne's top recruit a year ago but sat out the season after being shot. He was a junior transfer from Miami-Dade Community College in Florida.

He told The Associated Press in an interview last month that he felt lucky to be alive. After the shooting, a teammate applied a tourniquet to his badly bleeding arm while another drove him to a nearby hospital.

Baldonado could have bled to death without immediate help.

"I'm still out there hitting, banging around, so I feel like I'm still there. I still got that toughness in me," he said. "I've been doing good, so I know I've recovered a lot. I'm out of shape a little bit, but I know by the time the season starts that coach Everhart will have me in pretty good shape."

In April, Baldonado filed a lawsuit alleging that Duquesne failed to provide proper security at the school party that preceded the shootings. The two men accused of shooting at the players were not Duquesne students.

The suit also alleges that the shootings caused severe and permanent injuries that will affect Baldonado's ability to make a living as a pro basketball player, either in the NBA or overseas.

Baldonado is not seeking specific damages from the university. Neither of the suspects in the shooting was named as a defendant.

A message left for Teresa Toriseva, Baldonado's lawyer in the civil case, was not immediately returned Tuesday night.