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David Purdum
Thirteen men’s college basketball players from six schools were involved in gambling schemes, including point shaving and game manipulation, the NCAA announced Thursday.
Players formerly associated with Eastern Michigan, Temple, Arizona State, New Orleans, North Carolina A&T and Mississippi Valley State are under investigation for gambling violations, according to the NCAA, which declined to name the athletes until the infractions process has concluded. None of the players are currently enrolled at the schools where the infractions occurred, according to the NCAA.
The violations include athletes betting on and against their own teams, sharing information with third parties for purposes of betting, knowingly manipulating scoring or game outcomes and/or refusing to participate in the enforcement staff’s investigation.
“The rise of sports betting is creating more opportunity for athletes across sports to engage in this unacceptable behavior, and while legalized sports betting is here to stay, regulators and gaming companies can do more to reduce these integrity risks by eliminating prop bets and giving sports leagues a seat at the table when setting policies,” NCAA president Charlie Baker said in a release.
Schools and respective staffs in the ongoing cases are not alleged to have been involved in the violations, and the enforcement staff is not seeking penalties for the institutions, the NCAA said in its release.
ESPN previously reported that betting accounts associated with a gambling ring under federal investigation placed wagers deemed suspicious by bookmakers against Temple, Eastern Michigan, North Carolina A&T, Mississippi Valley State and New Orleans over the past two seasons.
