3 Michigan State Basketball Players Accused of 2015 Rape in Lawsuit

Three Michigan State basketball players are accused of raping a female student in April 2015 before university counseling staff allegedly coerced her not to report it to authorities, according to Chris Solari of the Detroit Free Press. 

The woman never reported the assault to the police, and she filed a lawsuit Monday in U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan Southern Division.

None of the three players or the victim were named in the lawsuit.

The incident reportedly took place on the evening of April 11, which was one week after the Spartans competed in the Final Four.

According to the lawsuit, the woman reported the rape to the Michigan State University Counseling Center on April 20 but was advised not to pursue charges after mentioning the basketball team. She said staffers told her that "she faced an uphill battle that would create anxiety and unwanted media attention."

After initially withdrawing from classes during the 2015 fall semester, she returned to school in January 2016.

Michigan State has been under scrutiny for its pattern of suppressing allegations of this nature regarding both its basketball and football team. In February, Paula Lavigne and Nicole Noren of Outside The Lines reported on several incidents of the school improperly handling assault allegations against the football team, as well as a detailed account of two basketball players allegedly committing rape in 2010.

Lavigne also reported the school has been under U.S. Department of Education oversight since 2014 for its mishandling of sexual assault cases, including those involving former team physician Larry Nassar.

School president Lou Anna Simon and athletic director Mark Hollis have since resigned.