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Oklahoma State Basketball Receives Allegations Notice from NCAA After FBI Probe
November 22, 2019
Oklahoma State received a notice of allegations from the NCAA stemming from the FBI's probe into bribery and fraud in college basketball.
Per the official NCAA release, the Level I unethical conduct charge is against former Cowboys associate head coach Lamont Evans for his role in the scandal.
In a statement from the university, Oklahoma State stated Evans acted alone and noted it has asked to appear in front of the NCAA Infractions Committee to present its case in an attempt to reduce the level of the allegation:
The NCAA accused Evans of unethical actions that "were intentional or showed reckless indifference to the NCAA constitution and bylaws" and "seriously undermined or threatened the integrity of the NCAA Collegiate Model."
In September 2017, Evans was one of four assistant basketball coaches who was charged in a federal corruption investigation.
Auburn's Chuck Person Arizona's Emanuel "Book" Richardson and USC's Tony Bland were the other coaches to be charged in the case.
When Evans pleaded guilty in January, he admitted to accepting $22,000 in bribe money that would steer prospects at South Carolina, where he worked as an associate head coach for four seasons, and Oklahoma State to specific financial advisers and business managers.
Evans, who was fired two days after being charged, was sentenced in June to three months in prison and ordered to forfeit $22,000 and work 100 hours of community service.
Per NCAA.org, Level I violations are the most severe with penalties that could include postseason bans, show-cause orders against coaches and scholarship reductions.
Current Oklahoma State head coach Mike Boynton is not mentioned in the notice as having been part of the scandal, nor is any member of his current staff.