1 current, 2 former Eastern Michigan athletes among group charged in basketball point-shaving scheme

Two former Eastern Michigan University basketball players and one current player were named in a federal indictment in connection with a point-shaving scheme.

According to court records from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, former EMU players Jalen Terry and Da'Sean Nelson and current player Carlos Hart were among the 26 people indicted this week for allegedly influencing the outcome of men's basketball games in the Chinese Basketball Association and the NCAA.

The indictment alleges that between 2023 and 2025, a group of fixers approached college players about influencing certain NCAA games, offering between $10,000 to $30,000 per game.

Court records show that Terry and Nelson were playing at DePaul University in February and March 2024 when they allegedly began fixing games, such as underperforming and trying to recruit other players. Hart was recruited in March 2024 when he was playing at the University of New Orleans.

Terry and Nelson transferred to Eastern Michigan in November 2024, where they allegedly continued the scheme. Hart transferred to EMU ahead of the 2026 season, but court documents did not show that he participated in the scheme there.

Eastern Michigan Athletics released a statement on X, saying that Hart was immediately suspended "from all team activities at EMU pending the outcome of this case."

In its statement, EMU said in part, "The alleged conduct attributed to the current student-athlete in the indictment occurred prior to his enrollment at Eastern Michigan University, while he was attending another institution. Eastern was not aware of any allegations of this nature during the recruitment process."

"The conduct described in the indictment stands in direct opposition to the values and expectations of Eastern Michigan University Athletics," the university added.

Court records show that Terry and Nelson allegedly agreed to underperform in the first half of EMU's Nov. 21, 2024, matchup against Oakland University. Eastern Michigan was down 26 to 38 in the first half, allowing the fixers to win their bets, records show.

EMU won the game, 68-64; however, Terry scored zero points in the first half, according to court records.

Records show that on Dec. 21, 2024, a fixer texted Terry about influencing EMU's game against Wright State University. Terry and Nelson allegedly underperformed in the first half of the game, with Eastern Michigan down 27 points to Wright's 38. EMU won the game, 59-44, but Terry and Nelson scored twice as much in the second half than the first.

In October, the NCAA  said Nelson, Terry and former Eastern Michigan athlete Jalin Billingsley did not cooperate with an investigation into potential sports betting violations. The NCAA said several integrity monitoring services flagged it regarding alleged suspicious first-half betting activity on EMU's Jan. 14, 2025, game against rival Central Michigan University. 

Billingsley's name was not mentioned in the federal indictment.

In addition to Eastern Michigan, court records show that a February 2024 game between Western Michigan and Buffalo was rigged. None of the WMU players at that time were accused of being involved. 

Records show that former Buffalo players Shawn Fulcher and Isaiah Adams, who were named in the indictment, agreed to underperform in the first half of the game against Western Michigan. 

WMU won the game, 91-72.