Alabama State basketball now sits at the center of another college sports betting case. The NCAA says four former players took payments from bettors and agreed to affect a December 2024 game against Southern Miss.
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The NCAA linked the Alabama State case to game manipulation, sports betting payments, false statements, and failure to cooperate.
Southern Miss entered the Dec. 5, 2024 game as a six point favorite and won 81-64. The NCAA says the fix began before tipoff, when Fulcher placed teammates in a group chat with one of two known bettors. According to Knox, the bettor offered money if Alabama State players threw the game.
Knox later told NCAA enforcement staff that a second bettor paid $2,000 total to Knox, Fulcher, Hines and Madlock. The NCAA treated the conduct as Level I violations, the most serious category in the association rulebook.
The case did not start with Alabama State. Temple contacted NCAA enforcement staff in July 2025 after the FBI reached out about Hines, who had transferred there during the summer. The FBI had text messages tied to a sports integrity issue from Hines while he played at Alabama State.
Federal charges soon followed. Prosecutors in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania indicted both bettors on Jan. 14 on wire fraud and bribery charges. Prosecutors also indicted Fulcher and Hines over their roles around the Southern Miss game.
The NCAA said Knox agreed to his violations. Fulcher, Hines and Madlock either did not take part in the investigation fully or failed to respond. Fulcher denied contact with bettors, denied sharing information, and denied betting on sports. NCAA records said otherwise, including a paid phone call and sports betting through a daily fantasy site.
Hines also gave answers the NCAA called false or misleading. His attorney told enforcement staff in January 2026 that Hines wanted to interview, but Hines denied taking part in a call and denied sharing information with bettors. He also did not provide a requested text message log.
Madlock had already used his eligibility after the 2024-25 season and did not give the NCAA an interview.
College basketball had already been dealing with more betting alerts, federal cases, and NCAA discipline tied to player prop bets and inside information. Lower profile games can create extra risk because betting markets may react harder to small pieces of team information, including injuries, minutes, or player availability.
The Alabama State part feels even sharper because of how the season ended. Knox, Hines and Madlock finished as the top three scorers for the team in 2024-25. Fulcher served as a reserve. Alabama State later reached March Madness for the fifth time and won the first NCAA Tournament game in program history when Knox scored the go ahead layup with one second left against Saint Francis.
None of the four players currently compete in NCAA sports or remain with Alabama State.
The NCAA named Amarr Knox, Shawn Fulcher, Corey “CJ” Hines and Tony Madlock.
The NCAA tied the violations to Alabama State at Southern Miss on Dec. 5, 2024. Southern Miss won 81-64.
Knox told NCAA enforcement staff that the four players received $2,000 total from a bettor.
Temple contacted NCAA enforcement staff after the FBI reached out about Hines, who had transferred to Temple during the summer of 2025.
The NCAA declared the players permanently ineligible. Players with eligibility left can only seek reinstatement with help from an NCAA school.