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11/07 12:13 CST NCAA revokes eligibility of 6 more college basketball players
as it continues sports betting probe
NCAA revokes eligibility of 6 more college basketball players as it continues
sports betting probe
By DOUG FEINBERG
AP Basketball Writer
The NCAA revoked the eligibility of six men's college basketball players for
allegations of sports betting on Friday in three separate cases at New Orleans,
Mississippi Valley and Arizona State.
The NCAA Committee on Infractions released findings from an investigation that
concluded Cedquavious Hunter, Dyquavian Short, Jamond Vincent, Donovan Sanders,
Alvin Stredic and Chatton "BJ" Freeman either manipulated their performances to
lose games, not cover bet lines or ensure certain prop bets were reached, or
provided information that enabled others to do so during the 2024-25 regular
season.
The NCAA said last month it had been investigating at least 30 current or
former players for gambling allegations. Its push to clean up college sports in
the era of legal sports betting comes as the NBA and professional sports
grapple with what the FBI has called a sophisticated gambling ring that
involved organized crime families.
The NCAA also banned three college basketball players in September for betting
on their own games at Fresno State and San Jose State.
The violations at New Orleans against Hunter, Short and Vincent came to light
after the NCAA received a tip about game manipulation. The NCAA said a
student-athlete overheard the three players discuss a third party placing a bet
on their game against McNeese State on Dec. 28, 2024. New Orleans lost 86-61.
That same student-athlete reported that during a timeout near the end of the
game, Short instructed him not to score any more points. New Orleans suspended
all three student-athletes for the remainder of the season while it
investigated the allegations.
The NCAA investigation showed that the three players manipulated their
performances in seven games from December through January to lose by more
points than the spread for that game.
The violations against Freeman were uncovered when the NCAA reviewed text
messages involving Mykell Robinson, who played at Fresno State. Records on
Robinson's phone indicated that on four separate occasions between November and
December 2024, Freeman knowingly provided information to Robinson, who was
betting on Freeman through daily fantasy sports accounts.
Freeman also knowingly provided information on at least two occasions to his
then-girlfriend, who was also betting on Freeman.
The NCAA reached out to an integrity monitoring service to review Mississippi
Valley games after a related, but separate NBA gambling ring that was uncovered
earlier this year showed potential ties to college basketball, including the
school.
The service indicated betting trends for the Mississippi Valley games on Jan. 6
against Alabama A&M were suspicious. Mississippi Valley lost 79-67.
During an interview with the NCAA, a men's basketball student-athlete said that
before the team's Dec. 21, 2024, game, he overhead Sanders on the phone with an
unknown third party talking about "throwing the game."
Sanders asked the student-athlete to participate in the call because the third
party had told Sanders the individual intended to bet on the game and wanted to
know that another of Sanders' teammates would participate in the scheme.
The student-athlete denied altering his performance or receiving money from
Sanders or any other individuals. Sanders texted the same student-athlete after
that game and told him to delete their messages.
During a second interview, Sanders could not explain the student-athlete's
account of the events or the text messages. He did say, however, that he and
Stredic were offered money to throw the team's Jan. 6 game by another anonymous
caller, who instructed them to perform poorly in the first half.
The enforcement staff demonstrated that Sanders knowingly provided information
to a third party for the purposes of sports betting for two games and Stredic
did the same for one game.
This all comes in the wake of the NCAA potentially allowing student athletes
and staff to bet on professional sports. It was originally approved by all
three Divisions and was set to go into effect on Nov. 1, but late last month
the Division I Board voted to delay the start date until Nov. 22.
A rarely used rule allows 30 days for each Division I school to vote to rescind
a proposal if it is adopted by less than 75% of the Division I cabinet. Even if
the rule passes, no college sports are allowed to be bet on by players.
___
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