Two additional defendants plead guilty in college hoops point-shaving scandal

Earlier this month, a ringleader in the US college basketball point-shaving scandal received a lengthy prison term at a sentencing hearing in Philadelphia.

When Jalen Smith appeared at a hearing on 14 October, a federal judge imposed a 72-month prison sentence against the trainer for his role in one of the largest match-fixing schemes in college basketball history. In a case that enmeshed more than 17 NCAA Division I basketball teams, Smith is the first defendant to be formally sentenced. Two others will face sentencing early next year after agreeing to plea deals this week.

On Monday, Roderick Winkler entered a guilty plea before US District Judge Nitza I. Quiñones Alejandro to several felony charges, including bribery in sporting contests. Winkler, 32, worked with others to recruit and bribe players to underperform, while improving the odds that their teams would not cover the spread on select games.

Separately, a former University of Southern Mississippi player agreed to plead guilty on bribery in sporting contests, as well as aiding and abetting the scheme. Former Golden Eagles guard Arlando “Mo” Arnold averaged 6.2 points and 2.4 assists per game in 2023-24, as a fifth-year senior. During the same season, Arnold allegedly helped fix two games and recruited a co-conspirator in a third.

The scheme

As with Smith, Winkler gained proximity to top college basketball players by serving as a trainer on the grassroots level. A resident of Little Rock, Arkansas, Winkler spent time as a coach and trainer in AAU and high school basketball, according to court filings.

Beginning in 2023-24, Winkler joined several others in recruiting and offering bribes to NCAA players in an attempt to fix a series of games.

Winkler and others targeted players for whom the bribes would meaningfully supplement or exceed the student-athletes’ legitimate opportunities for “Name-Image-Likeness” compensation, according to a press release.

The fixers generally targeted players on teams that were underdogs and sought to have them fail to cover the spreads in those games, prosecutors from the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania allege.

In total, the bribery and point-shaving scheme involved more than 39 players on over 17 different NCAA Division I men’s basketball teams, who fixed and attempted to fix more than 29 NCAA games.

The scheme also resulted in more than $3 million in fraudulent wagers on the games, and more than $1.1 million in financial losses to sportsbooks throughout the country.

Prison time?

Winkler took part in schemes that involved approximately a dozen players, including games that featured Nicholls State, Tulane, St. Louis, Buffalo, North Carolina A&T and Robert Morris, among others. In March 2024, Winkler and others recruited Carlos Hart, a University of New Orleans guard, to participate in the scheme. Hart and a teammate underperformed in a game against Lamar, delivering a six-figure win to the syndicate.

Around the same time, the group worked with Arnold, a veteran guard on Southern Miss. The syndicate bet on two games fixed by Arnold in the 2023-24 season, a 73-70 loss to South Alabama and a 77-61 defeat to Louisiana. Arnold, prosecutors allege, also helped recruit Hart to participate in the aforementioned game versus Lamar.

For the two fixed Southern Mississippi games, plus the fixed New Orleans game against Lamar, the fixers could have won a total of $673,885. However, the syndicate failed to beat the spread in one of the Southern Miss games. Instead, the fixers won a total of $269,766 from those games, according to prosecutors.

“This news is disappointing to everyone associated with Southern Miss Athletics,” said Southern Miss Athletic Director Jeremy McClain in January. “Integrity of the game is important to anyone who loves college sports.”

Winkler is facing a maximum sentence of 45 years in prison on the convictions. He is scheduled to be sentenced on 8 February 2027. Arnold, meanwhile, could receive a statutory maximum of five years’ imprisonment for the bribery in sports charge. The former Golden Eagles player is scheduled to appear for sentencing on 29 March 2027.