Georgia Tech Banned from 2020 NCAA Tournament over Impermissible Benefits

The Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets men's basketball team was banned from 2020 postseason play Thursday as part of a ruling from the Division I Committee on Infractions panel, which determined two boosters provided impermissible benefits to the program.

"Both sets of violations occurred because men's basketball coaching staff members invited outside individuals into their program," the committee said. "They permitted these outside individuals to interact with their student-athletes, and those actions resulted in violations."

Other punishments include four years of probation with one scholarship taken away each year, a fine of $5,000 plus 2 percent of the program's budget, and a series of recruiting restrictions.

Former Georgia Tech assistant coach Darryl LaBarrie received a three-year show-cause order, and the university self-imposed a three-year disassociation with him:

"The former assistant coach violated NCAA ethical conduct rules when he did not cooperate with the investigation. After initially denying any involvement during his first interview with NCAA enforcement staff, the former assistant coach admitted that he arranged the impermissible activity with the booster. The former assistant coach also tried to get the student-athlete host to lie about what happened, according to the committee."

In April, LaBarrie told Ken Sugiura of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution he regretted taking a group that allegedly included recruit Wendell Carter Jr. (who later went to Duke), then-Yellow Jackets guard Justin Moore and program legend Jarrett Jack to a strip club.

"I would do anything to go back and change what I did on that night," he said. "It was just a lapse in judgment."

However, LaBarrie denied being aware that $300 was given to each player for use at the club. The money was mentioned in the committee ruling, but it wasn't directly linked to the former assistant.

Meanwhile, a second booster was previously identified as Ron Bell, a former friend of Tech head coach Josh Pastner who informed him of potential infractions he committed when their friendship abruptly ended.

Bell told Alan Judd of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in February 2018 he provided players with items such as shoes and clothing, but he said Pastner was "too smart to leave a paper trail linking him to violations."

"Every word out of Ron's mouth is a lie," Bell's mother told Pastner's lawyers as part of a lawsuit filed against him by the Yellow Jackets head coach.

Georgia Tech must also provide the NCAA with information regarding games played by potentially ineligible players within the next 14 days, and it will vacate any records in those contests.

Pastner has compiled a 48-53 record across three years with the Yellow Jackets after a seven-year run with the Memphis Tigers that featured a 167-73 mark and four NCAA tournament appearances.