LAWRENCE, Kan. (AP) — The NCAA has declared Kansas forward Silvio De Sousa ineligible for the remainder of this season and next season after his name surfaced in the FBI probe into college basketball corruption.
In a statement late Friday, the NCAA said that De Sousa’s guardian received a $2,500 payment from a university booster and agent and agreed to receive an additional $20,000 from the same individual and an Adidas employee for securing his commitment to the Jayhawks.
Kansas said it intends to appeal the decision.
De Sousa arrived at Kansas for the second semester last season, and played an integral role in their Final Four appearance. But after his name surfaced in the FBI probe into Adidas over the summer, the school announced that it would withhold De Sousa from competition pending an investigation.
Kansas coach Bill Self decried the NCAA’s decision, saying “in my 30-plus years of coaching college basketball I have never witnessed such a mean-spirited and vindictive punishment.”
