2015 University of Louisville basketball sex scandal

American college basketball scandal thumb|300px|KFC Yum! Center is the home of Louisville Cardinals men's basketball. The 2015 University of Louisville basketball sex scandal involved National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) rules violations committed by the University of Louisville men's basketball program. The scandal centered around improper benefits given by Andre McGee, a former Louisville player who was then serving as Director of Basketball Operations, to prospective players and former Louisville players.University of Louisville Public Infractions Decision June 15, 2017 https://www.ncaa.org/sites/default/files/2017INF_LouisvillePublicInfractionsDecisionF_20170615.pdf National Collegiate Athletic Association 18 June 2017 16 June 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170616135800/http://www.ncaa.org/sites/default/files/2017INF_LouisvillePublicInfractionsDecisionF_20170615.pdf dead An investigation of the program was joined by the NCAA and the FBI. As a result of the investigation, Louisville's basketball program was punished with sanctions.Greer Jeff February 20, 2018 A timeline of the Louisville basketball investigation: From 2015 to 2018 https://www.courier-journal.com/story/sports/college/louisville/2018/02/20/louisville-basketball-ncaa-investigation-timeline/1035815001/ May 17, 2024 Courier Journal Katina Powell In October 2015, Yahoo! Sports reported that the University of Louisville was investigating allegations made by Katina Powell, who described herself as a madam. Powell alleged that she had been paid several thousand dollars from 2010 to 2014 to provide women to dance for and have sex with Cardinals players and recruits. Many of the alleged parties took place at Minardi Hall, the men's basketball dormitory; others took place at off-campus locations. The allegations came out in advance of the release of Breaking Cardinal Rules: Basketball and the Escort Queen, a book written by Powell and Indianapolis-based investigative journalist Dick Cady. In the book, Powell named Andre McGee, a former Cardinals assistant who was the team's director of operations in 2015, as having paid her for these services.https://sports.yahoo.com/news/louisville-investigating-allegations-basketball-staffer-paid-for-prostitutes-for-players--recruits-013459979.html Louisville investigating allegations basketball staffer paid for prostitutes for players, recruits Pat Forde Pat Forde Yahoo! Sports October 2, 2015 June 20, 2017 July 20, 2017 https://web.archive.org/web/20170720215603/https://sports.yahoo.com/news/louisville-investigating-allegations-basketball-staffer-paid-for-prostitutes-for-players--recruits-013459979.html live Andre McGee Andre McGee McGee graduated from Canyon Springs High School in Moreno Valley, California, in 2005. That fall, he enrolled at Louisville, where he played for the Cardinals for four seasons. He helped the 2007–08 Cardinals reach the Elite Eight in the 2008 NCAA tournament. As the starting point guard during his senior year, he led the 2008–09 Cardinals to the Big East regular season and Big East tournament championships. The team earned the No. 1 overall seed in the 2009 NCAA tournament and again advanced to the Elite Eight. He played in 127 career games, including 57 starts, while averaging 5.2 points per game for the Cardinals.https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/andre-mcgee-1.html Andre McGee College Stats Sports Reference March 13, 2022 March 13, 2022 https://web.archive.org/web/20220313233017/https://www.sports-reference.com/cbb/players/andre-mcgee-1.html live After his playing career at Louisville, McGee played briefly in the Basketball Bundesliga in Germany.https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97569515/prodigal-son-mcgee-returns/ Prodigal son McGee returns The Courier-Journal Louisville, Kentucky C3 January 10, 2010 March 13, 2022 newspapers.com March 14, 2022 https://web.archive.org/web/20220314003019/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97569515/prodigal-son-mcgee-returns/ live He then served as a program assistant and Director of Basketball Operations under head coach Rick Pitino from 2010 to 2014. It was during this time that McGee committed NCAA violations by acquiring and paying for striptease dances and sexual acts for prospective players and players on his current roster. The violations occurred from December 2010 until June 2014.Tracy Marc https://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/06/sports/ncaabasketball/louisville-mens-basketball-investigation.html Louisville Men's Basketball Team Is Out of Post-Season The New York Times February 5, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160209130741/http://www.nytimes.com/2016/02/06/sports/ncaabasketball/louisville-mens-basketball-investigation.html February 9, 2016 Findings thumb|right|Rick Pitino in 2013 The NCAA found Pitino guilty of a Level I charge. NCAA bylaws 11.1.2.1 and 11.1.1.119 require the head coach to monitor all recruiting activities to ensure that they are complied with. Pitino failed to monitor that his director of basketball operations, McGee, complied with NCAA rules when Pitino gave McGee recruiting responsibilities. The NCAA found that McGee engaged in unethical conduct and failed to cooperate when he refused to participate in interviews or provide relevant information to the enforcement staff during the investigation, which constituted violations of NCAA bylaws 10.01.1, 10.1, 19.2.3, and 10.1-(a).16 Penalties Pitino was set to be suspended for the first five games of the 2017–18 season,https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97570625/pitino-suspected-five-games-for-sex-scan/ Pitino suspected five games for sex scandal Gary B. Graves AP The Boston Globe C2 June 16, 2017 March 13, 2022 newspapers.comLouisville competed in basketball in the Big East Conference for the 2005–06 through 2012–13 seasons, in the American Athletic Conference during the 2013–14 season, and then joined the Atlantic Coast Conference starting with the 2014–15 season. but Louisville fired him in October 2017, before the season started.October 17, 2017 As expected, Pitino fired https://www.newspapers.com/article/kenosha-news-as-expected-pitino-fired/97570836/ March 13, 2022 Kenosha News Kenosha, Wisconsin 13 newspapers.com AP The program also had 123 wins from December 2010 to April 2014 vacated, including the 2012 Final Four and the 2013 national championship.June 25, 2017 UNIVERSITY OF LOUISVILLE PUBLIC INFRACTIONS DECISION https://www.ncaa.org/sites/default/files/2018Louisville%20Public%20Infractions%20Decision_20180104.pdf 2020-03-19 ncaa.org 2021-06-25 https://web.archive.org/web/20210625142540/https://www.ncaa.org/sites/default/files/2018Louisville%20Public%20Infractions%20Decision_20180104.pdf live Note: During the period of the infraction, the NCAA rules were changed, so the rule number designations changed. Pitino was found guilty of violating one rule whose designation number changed. June 15, 2017 Former Louisville operations director acted unethically, head coach failed to monitor https://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/media-center/news/former-louisville-operations-director-acted-unethically-head-coach-failed-monitor 2020-03-19 ncaa.org 2021-05-08 https://web.archive.org/web/20210508164129/https://www.ncaa.org/about/resources/media-center/news/former-louisville-operations-director-acted-unethically-head-coach-failed-monitor live The Cardinals were the first to have a men's basketball national title vacated by the NCAA.Story Mark For U of L and Pitino, vacated NCAA title an ever-lasting stain on reputations February 20, 2018 Lexington Herald-Ledger https://www.kentucky.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/mark-story/article201149129.html January 5, 2019 January 6, 2019 https://web.archive.org/web/20190106055155/https://www.kentucky.com/sports/spt-columns-blogs/mark-story/article201149129.html liveNorlander Matt Louisville isn't the 1st NCAA champion to vacate a championship -- here are the rest February 20, 2018 CBSSports.com https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/louisville-isnt-the-1st-ncaa-champion-to-vacate-a-championship-here-are-the-rest/ January 5, 2019 January 6, 2019 https://web.archive.org/web/20190106010822/https://www.cbssports.com/college-basketball/news/louisville-isnt-the-1st-ncaa-champion-to-vacate-a-championship-here-are-the-rest/ live They also faced a monetary fine for revenue the university made from advertisements during the Final Fours and National Championship. The university filed an appeal, but the NCAA upheld the findings and punishments on February 20, 2018, subsequently declaring no official result of the 2013 NCAA tournament, and thus no official winner of the national championship.Graves Gary B. February 20, 2018 Louisville must vacate basketball title, NCAA denies appeal https://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/louisville-vacate-basketball-title-ncaa-denies-appeal-53220640 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20180221001423/https://abcnews.go.com/Sports/wireStory/louisville-vacate-basketball-title-ncaa-denies-appeal-53220640 2018-02-21 February 26, 2018 ABC News Associated Press On September 30, 2019, a group of players on the 2012–13 Cardinals team who were not involved in the rules violations settled a lawsuit they had filed against the NCAA. Most of the settlement was confidential, but one portion was authorized to be revealed—while Louisville's team records (including the national title) remained vacated, all honors and statistics for these players were restored. Luke Hancock, a plaintiff in the suit, was once again officially recognized as the Most Outstanding Player of the 2013 Final Four.September 30, 2019 Ex-Louisville players' stats, honors restored as part of NCAA settlement https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/27739799 October 1, 2019 ESPN.com Associated Press January 24, 2025 https://web.archive.org/web/20250124114137/https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/27739799 live See also University of Michigan basketball scandal University of Southern California athletics scandal Ohio State University football scandal University of Minnesota basketball scandal Notes References 30em 2015 University of Louisville basketball sex scandal Louisville Scandal Louisville Category:2015 in Louisville, Kentucky Category:2015 in sports in Kentucky