Louisville imposes additional sanctions on basketball program

A self-imposed postseason ban forced Louisville to sit out this year's NCAA tournament, and the school added more sanctions Wednesday in the wake of an escort scandal.

The school will remove two scholarships, one in 2017-18 and one in 2018-19, as well as reducing the amount of days the coaching staff can recruit by 30. The program will also lose an official visit for a recruit in 2016-17 and 2017-18.

"After much deliberation, the university believes that self-imposing these penalties is appropriate," legal counsel Steve Thompson said. "While the university could elect to wait until the infractions process is complete, those consulted agree that these penalties are consistent with NCAA legislation, and imposing these penalties now is the right thing to do and may advance the university's goal of expediting resolution of this matter."

The sanctions stem from a book that was released last fall by Katina Powell alleging that former basketball staffer Andre McGee paid her to provide strippers and escorts to have sex with players and recruits.

Rick Pitino has steadfastly denied any knowledge of the situation, and the investigation by the NCAA into the claims is ongoing. The decision to self-impose a postseason ban was particularly tough this season, as the Cardinals were the 14th-ranked team in the final AP top 25 poll before the NCAA tournament.