BUFFALO, N.Y. (WKBW) — Three former University at Buffalo basketball players were implicated in a federal indictment that alleges they accepted bribes to rig point totals during multiple Bulls games in the 2023-24 season.
It’s part of a scheme that federal prosecutors say involved players from more than a dozen colleges and universities, along with fixers, who recruited players to purposefully underperform during games in exchange for payments.
The fixers placed big bets against those players’ teams in those games, defrauding sportsbooks and other bettors, according to the indictment that was unsealed Thursday.
Former UB players Shawn Fulcher, lsaiah Adams and an unnamed individual are listed in the federal indictment.
Fulcher is the only one of the three charged in this particular indictment. He is charged with bribery in sporting contests, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud and aiding and abetting.
Adams is “charged elsewhere.”
The indictment says that during the 2023-24 season, the three players agreed to help ensure that Buffalo failed to cover the first-half spread in three separate games that season: February 24 against Western Michigan, February 27 against Kent State and March 5 against Ohio.
Bets against Buffalo to cover the first-half spreads of the Western Michigan and Ohio games were won, earning thousands of dollars in winnings for the conspirators from several sportsbooks, according to investigators.
According to investigators, bets against Buffalo to cover the first half spread of the Kent State game did not win, missing by one-half of a point. The indictment states that “with the score tied at 27 with 4:40 left to go in the first half of this game, Kent State scored the last points of the half, and Buffalo did not score again.” Also saying that Fulcher, Adams and the unnamed players scored 1 point over the last 13 minutes of the half, “missing several shots, including layups and dunks, and committing several turnovers.”
Both Fulcher and Adams transferred away from Buffalo following the 2023-24 season.
The University at Buffalo is expected to comment on the scandal later Thursday afternoon.
