
Associate head basketball coach Tony Bland pleads not guilty to bribery allegations
What a week for college basketball in Los Angeles
Tony Bland, the associate head coach of the USC men's basketball team, pleaded not guilty in a Manhattan district court on Wednesday to four charges regarding a bribery allegation.
In August, Bland was involved in a corruption scandal and was charged with fraud by the FBI. The scandal involved two other collegiate basketball coaches, a soon-to-be sports agent, and an Adidas employee. All five men face the same charges and also pleaded not guilty.
Bland stands accused of taking a $13,000 bribe from the soon-to-be sports agent, Christian Dawkins, to influence his players to use Dawkins' agent services once they make it to the NBA. The coach was also accused of illegally facilitating thousands of dollars to those associated with two USC players.
The other coaches involved in the scandal from Oklahoma State, and Arizona have all been fired by their schools. Bland still remains on the roster, but is on an administrative leave of absence.