Sources: Fresno professional athletes played DFS on own statistics

• David PurdumFeb 28, 2025, 03:23 PM ET

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  • Signed up with ESPN in 2014
  • Journalist covering gambling industry because 2008

Fresno State and the NCAA are investigating accusations that two males’s basketball players participated in day-to-day dream contests based on their own efficiencies, according to several sources acquainted with the matter.The sources

informed ESPN that junior forward Mykell Robinson and associates bet and went into day-to-day dream sports contests including Fresno State games in which he played. The wagers and dream entries included the under on Robinson’s points and rebounds, according to the sources. At least one major U.S. sportsbook got increased betting interest on Robinson’s props in games this season, according to a market source.Robinson, a junior forward, was gotten rid of from the roster after playing in a Jan. 11 game versus Nevada. Attempts to reach Robinson for comment were unsuccessful.Fresno State senior guard Jalen Weaver told ESPN on Thursday that he played a daily fantasy contest on his points amount to in the Bulldogs’home game against New Mexico on Dec. 31. Weaver stated he risked$ 50 that he would score more than 11 points on the fantasy website Sleeper. He finished with 13 points in a 103-89 loss to the Lobos.Editor’s Picks 2 Related”I simply made a bad decision, and I shouldn’t even have actually gotten included with that. Now, I’m certainly spending for it,”he stated.”I bank on a game I played in, but I never attempted to undermine the season. I never bet on us to lose, never ever bet my unders. “Weaver stated the Fresno State athletic department showed him a text thread between Robinson and himself talking about betting. Weaver said he has actually been dismissed from the group and plans to get in the transfer portal at the end of the season.A third Fresno State player, sophomore guard Zaon Collins, was held out of the Air Force game last Saturday for apparently banking on expert sports, according to multiple sources knowledgeable about the investigation. A lawyer representing Collins in another matter did not return several messages left by ESPN today. Collins remains on the roster listed on the school website.On Saturday, when the gaming inquiry was first reported, Fresno State said in a declaration that Weaver and Collins were”being kept from competition as the University reviews an eligibility matter.” A Fresno State authorities declined comment to ESPN, mentioning the continuous examination. The Mountain West Conference did not react to multiple messages left by ESPN. The NCAA decreased to comment on the examination, pointing out privacy, but said in a statement that it continued to advocate for the prohibiting of prop bets on individual college players. Prop bets, it said,”significantly threaten the college athletics environment– running the risk of competitors stability and targeting student-athletes for harassment.””Sports wagering problems are on the rise and while the Association, conferences and schools are doing everything possible to secure the games and the trainees who play them, it’s clear the kinds of bets used and the prevalence of unregulated wagering markets hinder

our efforts,”the NCAA said.The NCAA restricts student-athletes from participating in sports betting, including dream sports. Professional athletes found to have actually controlled games, shared information with gamblers or bank on their games can face a permanent loss of eligibility.Before the Air Force game, Weaver and Collins were two of Fresno State’s top three scorers, with averages of 12.5 and 12.0 points, respectively. Collins likewise led the team with 4.7 helps per game.Multiple sources told ESPN the Fresno State case is not thought to be tied to a federal examination into a gambling ring’s links to suspicious betting on college

basketball games.ESPN has reported that wagering accounts connected with the ring placed wagers considered suspicious by bookies versus Temple, Eastern Michigan, North Carolina A&T, Mississippi Valley State and the University of New Orleans over the previous 2 seasons.