Missouri Men’s Basketball Self-Imposes Penalties

The penalties stem from violations occurring since 2011.

The NCAA slapped the Missouri men’s basketball program with sweeping penalties this morning. Those penalties are the result of a 19-month investigation into the program. The entire 2013-14 season will be vacated, and Missouri receives a one-year postseason ban, which prohibits participation in either the SEC or NCAA tournaments among other penalties.

The violations discovered as part of the investigation are mostly Level I and Level II violations, which are considered major infractions. Most of the infractions stem from the actions of two individuals, who gave multiple students within the men’s basketball program impermissible benefits, including reduced rates at hotels, housing, and compensation for work done in an internship program. Some of the more minor violations included the arrangement of rental housing by a donor and “multiple impermissible recruiting contacts”.

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One of the individuals received a lifetime ban, and the other received a two-year ban. Neither will be able to receive tickets or represent the university in any form.  The program will also pay a $5,000 fine and will lose a scholarship no later than the 2017-18 season. In a statement head coach Kim Anderson said that the program is “disappointed that the actions of a few individuals have put our program in this situation”.