UConn basketball charged with eight violations

NCAA Basketball Betting Lines

05/28/2010 - Storrs, CT (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The University of Connecticut has received a notice of allegations from the NCAA in regard to possible recruiting violations in the men's basketball program.

UConn officials and the NCAA have been investigating the basketball program since March of 2009, when a report from Yahoo! Sports indicated possible rules violations in the recruitment of Nate Miles, who was expelled from school in October of 2008 without even practicing with the Huskies. The Yahoo! Sports report said Miles was provided with lodging, meals and transportation by Josh Nochimson -- a professional agent and a former UConn student manager.

The school on Friday said the notice from the NCAA contains eight allegations of violations, including impermissible phone calls and text messages to prospective student-athletes, impermissible benefits provided to a prospective student-athlete by a representative of the institution's athletic interests and an impermissible benefit to a prospective student-athlete by a member of the basketball staff.

UConn head coach Jim Calhoun was also part of the allegations, as the NCAA said he failed to promote an atmosphere of compliance in the men's basketball program and failed to adequately monitor the program to ensure compliance with NCAA legislation regarding telephone calls, text messages and benefits provided by a representative of the institution's athletic interests.

"During these past fifteen months, we have fully cooperated with the NCAA's inquiry into our recruitment of a particular student athlete and other matters generally related to the recruitment and conduct of our program," Calhoun said in a release through the school. "In this regard, we are steadfast in our belief that we operate a program deeply committed to complying with the NCAA's guidelines.

"In my 38 years as a collegiate head basketball coach, 25 of which I have spent at the University of Connecticut, I look with particular pride at our strong record of compliance and the impact that we have had on the young men in our program.

"We look forward to working with the NCAA in the coming months and expect to fully respond to their concerns. While we may have made some mistakes in the recruiting process, UConn has never wavered in terms of its fostering and maintaining a strong culture of compliance and has always striven to meet the high standards expected of us."

The university has until August 20 to provide a response to the NCAA Committee on Infractions. School officials are scheduled to appear before the committee on October 15-16.

"The University of Connecticut is fully committed to NCAA rules compliance and takes this matter very seriously," said UConn athletic director Jeffrey Hathaway. "With regard to Coach Calhoun, he personally has a long standing history of demonstrated commitment to NCAA compliance. We appreciate his continued commitment, as well as the full cooperation and support that he has provided throughout this process."

Other allegations from the NCAA include the provision of impermissible complimentary admissions or discretionary tickets, as well as a failure by the institution to adequately monitor the conduct and administration of the men's basketball staff in the areas of: telephone records; representatives of the institution's athletics interests; and complimentary admissions or discretionary tickets.

The NCAA also alleged that two members of the basketball staff provided false and misleading information to the NCAA Enforcement staff and to the institution.

On Thursday night, the Hartford Courant reported that assistant coach Patrick Sellers and director of basketball operations Beau Archibald resigned in the wake of the allegations.

The notice of allegations says members of the basketball staff violated rules by exchanging at least 160 impermissible phone calls and sending at least 191 impermissible text messages to prospective student-athletes. The NCAA permits just one call per month to prospective recruits in a player's junior year of high school.

In regard to Nochimson, the NCAA alleges he provided impermissible benefits and that as a former team manager he could be considered a person with "athletic interests" for the school. Therefore, he would be unable to be involved in the recruiting process.

The school released documents from the NCAA detailing Nochimson's role and correspondence with members of the UConn staff, including assistant coach Tom Moore, now the head coach at Quinnipiac.

In late September 2008, Miles was arrested by UConn campus police and issued a restraining order after a female student said she was physically and sexually assaulted by him. Miles then made contact with the woman, leading to felony charges of violating a restraining order.

The school expelled Miles in early October before basketball practice began. Miles eventually enrolled at the College of Southern Idaho.

Onlinwsportsbook NCAA Basketball Betting News

<< Carmona, Indians open road series in the Bronx
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The last time Fausto Carmona stepped on the mound at new Yankee Stadium, the Indians' offense erupted in a record-tying performance. Given how Cleveland's offense struggled in its last game, the club hopes its hurler

<< Blue Jays, Orioles set to begin stretch of divisional games
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Already 18 games out of first place in the American League East, the Baltimore Orioles can at least try to have some fun by shaking up the standings with 12 straight matchups against their division opponents. The Orioles w

<< Rockies aim for sixth straight win vs. LA
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Colorado Rockies go for a sixth straight win this evening when they open a three-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Coors Field. The Rockies continued to roll on Thursday, as Seth Smith, Carlos Gonz

<< Giants seek to deal Diamondbacks fifth straight loss
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The San Francisco Giants got their nine-game homestand off to a good start, but could experience some trouble tonight with struggling starter Matt Cain on the hill for the opener of a three-games series versus the Arizona Dia

<< West-leading Padres resume homestand with visit from Nats
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The National League West-leading San Diego Padres need just one more win to secure a fourth straight month of at least .500 baseball. They have a good shot at doing that tonight, with the Washington Nationals in town for the

Hurricanes agree to one-year deal with Tlusty >>
Raleigh, NC (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - The Carolina Hurricanes have agreed to terms with forward Jiri Tlusty on a one-year contract worth $500,000. Tlusty was acquired by the Hurricanes from Toronto last December in exchange for the rights to

Many early entries will likely go undrafted >>
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) -A record wave of college basketball players have left school early for the chance to get paid by the NBA - despite the league's uncertain labor situation.For some, like Kentucky's John Wall and Ohio State's Evan Turner, it's p

Fiery Westhoff rebuilding Jets' special teams unit >>
FLORHAM PARK, N.J. (AP) -Mike Westhoff is trying to rebuild the New York Jets' special teams unit after losing several key players, including the kicker, long snapper and special teams ace.Westhoff tells The Associated Press he is probably facing th

Four comprise 2010 Hall of Fame class >>
Saratoga Springs, NY (Sportsbook Betting Lines) - Former Horses of the Year Point Given and Azeri, along with Best Pal and retired jockey Randy Romero, have been elected to the National Museum of Racing's Hall of Fame. The four will be inducte

AL Central: Cleveland a target for jokesters >>
(Sportsbook Betting Lines) - When your team has the second-worst record in the American League and boasts the lowest attendance totals in all of baseball, you're bound to be the butt of a few jokes. That seems be the case for the Cleveland Indians, wh

Big East Conference odds

Work left to do: Villanova, Syracuse, DePaul, West Virginia, Providence

Notre Dame and Louisville appear to have done enough to make the move, so we'll make them locks. The Cardinals, despite a modest RPI, are trending way up and have clinched at least a tie for third in the Big East, which should be more than enough with their pair of big road wins. Villanova got back to .500 and gets back to more solid footing. Syracuse got a very important road win and crippled a fellow contender in the process. West Virginia's fate could be in its hands Tuesday at Pitt.

Work left to do:

Villanova [18-9 (7-7), RPI: 21, SOS: 5] Pounded Rutgers to get back to .500. If Cats can get their last two (at UConn, vs. Syracuse), that should be enough with strong computer numbers and a host of wins away from The Pavilion. The Cats have beaten Texas and swept the Big 5 (never easy in Philly), but have a couple of losses to bubble teams (Xavier, Drexel), too. I still think they'll be OK, possibly even at 8-8.

Syracuse [20-8 (9-5), RPI: 53, SOS: 62] History says 10 wins will be plenty, but it might be hard for the Orange to get that last one with a final two vs. G'town, which is trying to win the league title, and at Villanova, which will be desperate for a W. The relative lack of nonconference heft and the weak computer numbers are still concerns, but the Orange have won four in a row and got a very, very big win at Providence on Saturday.

DePaul [16-12 (8-7), RPI: 54, SOS: 18] Beat Cincy and should get past South Florida to get to 9-7, but then what? They have beaten Kansas and Cal (right after the DeVon Hardin injury) earlier this season, but also have lost to Bradley and Purdue, among others. They'll likely need a couple of BE tourney wins, too, but we'll see ...

West Virginia [19-7 (8-6), RPI: 58, SOS: 125] The game at Pitt on Tuesday night could decide the Mountaineers' fate (barring a deep tournament run). They can still get to 9-7 in the Big East without it by beating Cincinnati, but the nine wins would be against UConn, Villanova, St. John's, South Florida, DePaul, Rutgers, Seton Hall twice and the Bearcats. Beating bubble foes is fine, but where's the beef? Outside of beating PG-less UCLA in nonconference play (still a top quality win), there's not a lot to fall back on (besides maybe NC State). WVU vs. Syracuse would be an interesting debate, as the teams don't play in the Big East regular season. WVU has the best win, but Cuse has played the much better schedule.

Providence [17-10 (7-7), RPI: 70, SOS: 33] The Friars likely saw their at-large hopes die at home in the four-point loss to Syracuse, barring an unexpected run to the Big East semis or more. The RPI, bad already, won't be helped by playing St. John's and South Florida in the final two league games.

For more March Madness odds go to MySportsbook.com

For more College Basketball betting lines go to BettingExpress.com

To visit this online sportsbook got to MySportsbook.com - this sportsbook accepts credit cards.