As the college basketball season prepares to tip off, an NCAA gambling investigation with links to the NBA betting scandal is impacting the status of multiple players at several schools, according to sources familiar with the probe.

One player has been dismissed from a team, and at least two are being withheld from competition due to eligibility concerns related to the investigation, according to the sources. The NCAA said in a release last week that it had opened investigations into potential betting violations by approximately 30 current or former men’s basketball players. Some of the cases have already been adjudicated, including ones involving former players for Eastern Michigan, Fresno State and San Jose State.

Western Michigan told ESPN on Thursday that senior guard Justice Williams would not be participating in competition, “pending the results of a recent NCAA investigation of events that precede his enrollment” at the school. That investigation is the NCAA’s gambling probe, according to multiple sources with direct knowledge.

Williams did not play in Western Michigan’s exhibition game on Wednesday night. The Philadelphia native started his college career at LSU before transferring to Robert Morris, where he did not play last season because of injury. Attempts to reach him were unsuccessful.

On Friday, Sports Illustrated reported that Eastern Kentucky guard Amarr Knox is also currently ineligible. Knox transferred from Alabama State, which SI reported is a school of interest in the ongoing probe. Eastern Kentucky confirmed to ESPN that Knox is ineligible under NCAA rules but declined further comment.

Earlier this week, two other schools said that players were held out or dismissed. Multiple sources with direct knowledge told ESPN these actions were related to the NCAA’s gambling investigation.

Wisconsin announced Tuesday that senior forward Elijah Gray had been dismissed from the team because of “events preceding his enrollment” at the school. Gray began his college career at Fordham and played last season at Temple.

Dayton announced Sunday that it was withholding sophomore guard Adam Njie from competition after being notified by the NCAA of potential eligibility concerns “connected to matters that occurred prior to his enrollment at the university.” Njie played previously at Iona.

“In light of these concerns and the ongoing review process, Adam will not be participating in athletic competition at this time,” Dayton athletic director Neil Sullivan said in a statement posted on social media.

Attempts to reach Gray and Njie were unsuccessful. A spokesperson for Dayton declined additional comment Tuesday.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania is also investigating allegations of point shaving in college basketball, according to sources with direct knowledge of the federal investigation. Federal authorities have interviewed multiple college athletes, the sources told ESPN. Some of the same bettors indicted in the NBA betting scandal have been linked to suspicious betting on college basketball.

ESPN previously reported that Marves Fairley, who was federally indicted last week in the betting case involving the NBA’s Terry Rozier and Damon Jones, placed suspicious wagers on college basketball games at a Mississippi casino and had been banned from betting companywide. At the time, Fairley denied any involvement in point-shaving schemes when reached by ESPN.

The NCAA announced in September that it is investigating 13 former men’s basketball players at six schools — Arizona State, Temple, North Carolina A&T, Eastern Michigan, University of New Orleans and Mississippi Valley State — in its gambling probe.

ESPN previously reported that indictments are expected. The college basketball season tips off Monday.

ESPN’s Jeff Borzello contributed to this story.

Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens still have a chance to enter baseball’s hallowed hall.

The National Baseball Hall of Fame contemporary baseball era committee ballot will have holdovers in Bonds, Clemens, Don Mattingly and Dale Murphy, while others off the regular ballot have joined them.

Carlos Delgado, Jeff Kent, Gary Sheffield and Fernando Valenzuela will also be on the contemporary era committee ballot for the Class of 2026.

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The committee, made up of 16 voters, will meet on Dec. 7 during the winter meetings in Orlando, Florida to determine who may be entering the Hall in Cooperstown. A 75% vote is required for election, and if someone reaches that minimum, they will be inducted on July 26, 2026.

The regular Baseball Writers’ Associate of America (BBWAA) vote will be announced on Jan. 20, 2026.

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In 2022, the Hall of Fame restructured its veterans committees with panels to consider the contemporary era, which is from 1980 until now, as well as the classic era. For the contemporary era, there are two separate ballots for players and managers, executives and umpires. Contemporary managers, executives and umpires will be considered in December 2026, while classic era candidates will be viewed in December 2027.

Each committee meets every three years, meaning the next contemporary era ballot review will be in December 2028.

When this era ballot was reviewed in December 2022, Fred McGriff was unanimously elected with all 16 votes. Mattingly received eight votes, while Curt Schilling, who was dropped this year from the ballot, received seven. Bonds and Clemens, as well as Rafael Palmeiro, who was dropped along with Schilling, had less than four votes.

San Francisco Giants legend Barry Bonds smiles before the game between the San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park. (Bob Kupbens/Imagn Images)

Bonds, Clemens and Palmeiro are polarizing figures in the game, as the heights of their fame skyrocketed during baseball’s much-maligned steroids era. Bonds denied knowing using steroids, while Clemens had maintained he had never used them. Palmeiro is the same.

Sheffield also noted that he was unaware that he used performance-enhancing substances, which contained steroids, during training ahead of the 2002 season.

Bonds and Clemens would be shoo-ins for the Hall had their careers in MLB not been tainted by the accusations. Bonds and Clemens were both dropped from the BBWAA’s ballot in 2022 after the former received 66% of votes (260 of 394) and the latter secured 65.2% of votes (257). You also need 75% of votes to receive an induction into the Hall.

Bonds, of course, is still MLB’s home run king, having hit 762 over his career, while also holding the single-season home run record (73). He won seven NL MVP Awards, while also making 14 All-Star appearances.

Barry Bonds is introduced to the fans for the Pittsburgh Pirates Hall of Fame ceremonies at PNC Park. (Philip G. Pavely-USA Today Sports)

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Clemens, a seven-time Cy Young Award winner, has the third-most strikeouts in league history with 4,672, only behind Hall of Famers Nolan Ryan (5,714) and Randy Johnson (4,875).

It’s also worth noting that the December 2027 ballot will be the first chance that Pete Rose will be available for a vote after Commissioner Rob Manfred determined that his permanent suspension from MLB ended with his death in September 2024.

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Former Manchester United striker Wayne Rooney has said he “sticks by” his criticism of Virgil van Dijk after the Liverpool captain branded his suggestion the Reds have lacked leadership this season “lazy.”

Rooney singled out Van Dijk and teammate Mohamed Salah last week when discussing Liverpool’s recent poor run of form, saying the pair’s body language this term is “not right.”

When asked about Rooney’s comments following Liverpool’s 2-0 win over Aston Villa on Saturday, Van Dijk said: “I can say only positive things [about Rooney], but I feel like that comment is just I would say a bit of a lazy criticism.

“That’s my personal opinion. It’s easy to blame all the players but he knows obviously as well as everyone else we do it together, trying to help each and every one of us trying to get out of this.”

Rooney has since doubled down on his comments but admits he has “full respect” for the Liverpool defender.

Speaking on the latest episode of BBC’s The Wayne Rooney Show, the England legend said: “Virgil van Dijk’s similar to Salah, you know, over the last five years he’s been one of, if not the best defender in the world, and last year it was hard to say anything bad because they were that good, and he was that good.

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“I’m sure he’ll come out and tell you, he probably hasn’t been at his best this season, if he’s honest with himself. And as captain, your job as captain if things aren’t going right, is to speak to your teammates, call meetings with your teammates, and that’s really what I was saying. You know, as a captain, as a leader, I’m sure he will have been doing that,” he said.

“I’ve got full respect for Virgil. I think he’s a fantastic player. My job now as a pundit is to give my opinions on what I feel. I’m sure if you ask him or Arne Slot, he probably hasn’t been as good as he has been over the last few years. That was my comment which I stick by.”