Sports

Arizona’s Basketball Program Is Under NCAA Investigation

(Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

David Hookstead Sports And Entertainment Editor
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Arizona’s basketball program has found itself under the microscope of the NCAA.

The Arizona Daily Star reported Saturday that the program is under NCAA investigation, and the school confirmed it to the publication Friday.

According to the same report, the NCAA can now use outside evidence during investigations. That’s going to be a major issue here because former Arizona Assistant Coach Emanuel Richardson pleaded guilty to accepting bribes, according to ESPN. (RELATED: Sean Miller Gives Emotional Address To Arizona Fans, Declines To Comment On His Future)

Sean Miller has also been accused of paying or preparing to pay former player Deandre Ayton $10,000 a month to play for the Wildcats.

I think it’s fair to say we all saw this coming from the NCAA. There was no way the Wildcats were going to be routinely brought up in this NCAA investigation, and then not get looked at by the NCAA.

It just wasn’t going to happen, and my guess is the NCAA is going to do some substantial snooping around.

If you’re Sean Miller, it doesn’t matter if you’re guilty of any infractions or not at this point. He needs to get on the phone and start calling in every single favor he has.

As somebody who has spent substantial time in the world of college sports, I can promise you the last thing any program wants is to be under NCAA investigation.

I’d rather be under investigation by the FBI than the NCAA. At least the FBI has to prove you’re guilty in a courtroom.

The NCAA can pretty much do whatever the hell it wants. Best of luck to everybody out in Arizona. This situation will likely get a lot worse before it gets better.