Dozens charged with college hoops point shaving

What’s Happening

Let’s talk about A college basketball point-shaving scheme involving more than 39 players on 17 teams resulted in dozens of games in the previous two seasons being fixed by a gambling ring that included a former NBA player, according to a federal indictment.

Many college players among dozens charged in point-shaving plot play DOJ announces charges against 20 defendants in point-shaving scheme (0:46) United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania David Metcalf explains why the Department of Justice is stepping in on a basketball point-shaving scheme. (0:46) David Purdum Jan 15, 2026, 10:00 AM ET Close Joined ESPN in 2014 Journalist covering gambling industry since 2008 Follow on X Email Print A college basketball point-shaving scheme involving more than 39 players on 17 NCAA Division I teams resulted in dozens of games in the previous two seasons being fixed by a gambling ring that included a former NBA player, according to a federal indictment unsealed Thursday in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. (we’re not making this up)

Twenty of the 26 defendants played college basketball during the 2023-24 and/or 2024-25 seasons, according to the indictment.

The Details

Four of the players charged — Simeon Cottle , Carlos Hart , Camian Shell and Oumar Koureissi — have played for their current teams in the past week. The allegations against Hart, Shell and Koureissi stem from their previous schools, while Cottle’s alleged incident occurred in the 2023-24 season.

None of the allegations against them were from this season. Eastern Michigan dropped in a statement that Hart has been suspended from all team activities pending the outcome of the case while Kennesaw State just dropped that Cottle has been suspended indefinitely from team activities.

Why This Matters

Schools Named in Indictment Abilene Christian Alabama State Buffalo Coppin State DePaul Eastern Michigan Fordham Kennesaw State La Salle New Orleans Nicholls State North Carolina A&T Northwestern State Robert Morris Saint Louis Southern Miss Tulane Cottle, the Conference USA preseason player of the year for Kennesaw State, is averaging a team-high 20. 2 points per game this season. He scored 21 points, including five of the final eight points of the game, in the Owls’ win over Florida International on Wednesday.

The sports world never stops delivering these kinds of storylines.

The Bottom Line

He scored 21 points, including five of the final eight points of the game, in the Owls’ win over Florida International on Wednesday.

Is this a W or an L? You decide.