- Former Buffalo Bulls basketball player Isaiah Adams was one of the four players that agreed to a plea deal regarding a college basketball match fixing scheme.
- The scheme started with “fixers” bribing players to rig Chinese Basketball Association game and eventually NCAA basketball games, where Adams and other players got involved.
- Adams faces a $250,000 fine and up to five years in prison for his crimes.
BUFFALO, N.Y. – Multiple former Buffalo Bulls college basketball players pleaded guilty to their involvement in a match fixing scheme involving 17 different universities and dozens of athletes. The match fixers recruited players to participate in fixing games and point shaving, while they utilized legal sports betting sites to capitalize on missed shots and turnovers.
According to the government’s plea memorandum, “After profiting on the fixed CBA games, the fixers turned their attention to NCAA men’s basketball games. During the 2023-2024 and 2024-2025 NCAA men’s basketball seasons, the fixers agreed to recruit NCAA players who would accept bribe payments in exchange for helping to influence outcomes of NCAA basketball games. In particular, the fixers agreed to recruit into the scheme players who would help ensure that their team failed to cover the spread of the first half of a game or an entire game. The fixers would then place wagers on those games through the gambling outlets, betting against the team whose player or players they had bribed to engage in this point-shaving scheme.”
The document also claims that players were offered bribes between $10,000 and $30,000 over facetime calls, texts, and social media messages. Only one of the five match fixers have plead guilty, but Isaiah Adams, Shawn Fulcher, and a third unnamed University of Buffalo player agreed to underperform in games in exchange for cash. One specific instance occurred in a Feb. 24, 2024 game against Western Michigan, where the match fixers wagers roughly $90,000 at legal college basketball betting sites on Buffalo to not cover the 3.5-point first half spread.
Other Players Involved In College Hoops Match Fixing Scheme
Former Fordham University player Elijah Gray pleased guilty to bribery in sporting contests, plus aiding and abetting. He awaits sentencing alongside Diante Smith, a former Nicholls State University player, that pleaded guilty to the same charges.
