A suspected gambling ring under federal investigation for its role in two NBA betting cases also was involved in unusual wagering activity on at least three men’s college basketball programs this season, ESPN reported Monday.
Sportsbook accounts connected to the gambling ring bet against Eastern Michigan, Mississippi Valley State, and North Carolina A&T, according to ESPN’s reporting that was based on sourced information.
The website said some of the same accounts also placed large wagers on prop bets involving former Toronto Raptors player Jontay Porter in two games during the 2023-24 NBA season and then-Charlotte Hornets guard Terry Rozier in 2023.
Porter has admitted to manipulating his performance during games for gambling purposes and has been banned from the NBA for life. Rozier declined last week to comment on a reported investigation into unusual betting on his performance in a game.
The sportsbook accounts linked to the gambling ring also wagered on a Temple game flagged for suspicious betting last March.
“The NCAA takes sports betting very seriously and is committed to the protection of student-athlete well-being and the integrity of competition,” the NCAA said in a statement. “The Association works with integrity monitoring services, state regulators, and other stakeholders to conduct appropriate due diligence whenever suspicious reports are received. Due to confidentiality rules put in place by NCAA member schools, the NCAA will not comment on current or potential investigations.”
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AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball and https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll
