Earlier this month, the leader of a major college basketball point-shaving scandal was sentenced in a Philadelphia court. On October 14, a federal judge handed Jalen Smith a prison term of 72 months for his involvement in one of the largest match-fixing schemes ever involving NCAA basketball. Smith is the first defendant to be sentenced in a case that has implicated over 17 NCAA Division I teams. Two other individuals are scheduled for sentencing early next year after recently agreeing to plea deals.
On Monday, 32-year-old Roderick Winkler pleaded guilty to multiple felony charges, including bribery in sports contests, before US District Judge Nitza I Quiñones Alejandro. Winkler was involved in recruiting players and bribing them to underperform, thereby increasing the odds against their teams covering the spread in selected games.
In another development, Arlando “Mo” Arnold, a former player from the University of Southern Mississippi, also agreed to plead guilty to bribery in sports contests and aiding the scheme. Arnold averaged 6.2 points and 2.4 assists per game in the 2023-24 season and was implicated in the fixing of two games while recruiting a co-conspirator for a third.
Both Smith and Winkler built relationships with top college players through their work as trainers at the grassroots level. Winkler hails from Little Rock, Arkansas, where he has coached and trained players in AAU and high school basketball, as noted in court documents.
The scheme, which began in the 2023-24 season, involved Winkler and others who sought to bribe NCAA players to manipulate game outcomes. Prosecutors assert that they targeted players whose bribes would significantly enhance or surpass any legitimate opportunities for
