ESPN Outside the Lines reported Tuesday that five former University of Louisville basketball players and recruits claimed that they attended parties at a campus dorm for athletes from 2010 to 2014 that included strippers paid for by the team’s former graduate assistant coach, Andre McGee.
NCAA Basketball: Stripper Scandal is Bad for Louisville Cardinals & Worse for Coach Rick Pitino
Self-described former escort Katrina Powell wrote a book published this month entitled, “Breaking Cardinal Rules: Basketball and the Escort Queen.” Powell gave an extensive interview with Outside the Lines describing in detail nearly two dozen stripping and sex parties from 2010-2014 inside the Billy Minardi Hall, the on-campus dorm for athletes and other students.
McGee Arranged the Stripper Parties & Paid Powell $10,000
The report and book detailed that McGee arranged the parties and paid Powell $10,000 for supplying dancers during the time period. Powell also stated that McGee paid cash for “side deals,” which included sex with some recruits, their guardians and some Louisville players.
One former player stated that McGee paid for him to have sex with a dancer and even provided him with one-dollar bills to tip dancers. Another former player stated that he attended the parties as a recruit and a player and that McGee “would give us the money, just the recruits…and the recruits chose which one [of the dancers] they wanted.”
Outside the Lines stated that they reviewed Powell’s journals, text messages and phone records and independently confirmed that text messages sent to Powell to arrange the parties came from McGee’s cell phone. In addition, Outside the Lines independently confirmed a wire transfer from McGee to Powell for $200 on one occasion.
In her book and interview, Powell claimed that recruits JaQuan Lyle, Antonio Blakeney, Jordan Mickey and Terry Rozier all had sex during their recruiting visits. Lyle, Blakeney and Mickey either could not be reached for comment or declined to comment. Rozier stated that he didn’t “want to talk about it.”
Head Coach Rick Pitino Denies Any Knowledge
Head coach Rick Pitino has denied having any knowledge of the parties. McGee, who left Louisville in 2014, declined to comment and is currently an assistant at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.
Pitino has gone on record to state that McGee is the “only one with any answers.” In an interview with ESPN and Yahoo! Sports, Pitino stated that McGee “needs to come out and tell the truth.’
As Head Coach, Pitino Should Have Known
Pitino may not have known, but he should have known. This happened with one of his assistant coaches in a campus dorm. Pitino may be trying to slyly avoid responsibility by solely blaming McGee, but it is the head coach’s job to know of such wide-spread issues in his program.
This is not a simple, isolated $100 handshake with a booster. This is a four-year program of recruiting debauchery right on campus. How are the comings and goings of his players in the dorm not more closely monitored? Pitino’s claims of “hear and see no evil” ring hallow.
Louisville Cardinals Should Remove Pitino
Pitino said through a spokesperson that he had not intention of resigning. However, the Louisville program should not leave it to his discretion. The Cardinals need to rid themselves of the Pitino stain and clean house for the good of the program.
