NCAA suspends Pitino, vacates Louisville records for escort scandal

The NCAA suspended Louisville head coach Rick Pitino for the first five games of the 2017-18 ACC schedule Thursday as part of sanctions stemming from the program's escort scandal.

As part of the penalties, Louisville was ordered to vacate records from games played between December 2010 and July 2014 in which ineligible players participated. That period includes the Cardinals' 2013 national championship season, and it's likely they'll be forced to give up their title.

Among the other sanctions, Louisville's basketball program will be on probation for four years through June 14, 2021. The Cardinals avoided any future postseason bans, as the NCAA accepted their self-imposed ban from the 2015-16 season.

The NCAA began investigating Louisville in 2015 after self-proclaimed "Escort Queen" Katina Powell published a book detailing her experiences with the Cardinals' basketball program.

Andre McGee, a former Louisville staffer, was found to have paid escorts thousands of dollars to arrange dances and sex parties for recruits. Pitino eventually was charged with failing to monitor his staff.

"Without dispute, NCAA rules do not allow institutional staff members to arrange for stripteases and sex acts for prospects, enrolled student-athletes and/or those who accompany them to campus," the ruling panel said in its announcement.

McGee, who wasn't identified by name in the NCAA's report, received a 10-year show-cause order, while former assistant coach Brandon Williams, also not identified by name in the report, was given a one-year show-cause order.

In response to the ruling, Louisville stated it will appeal "all aspects of the penalties," based on its belief the NCAA's infractions committee "went beyond what we consider to be fair and reasonable."

"The person responsible for these activities, Andre McGee, long ago left the university, and he has yet to cooperate with investigating officials," interim president Greg Postel said. "We are disappointed that he was not cooperative.

"In contrast, UofL did cooperate. We wanted the NCAA Enforcement Staff to uncover what happened. We have been open and transparent throughout this process."

Fines and mild recruiting sanctions were also placed on Louisville. The NCAA's full ruling can be found here.