by Fitzgerald Cecilio

Moraga, CA

The NCAA has placed the St. Mary's (Calif.) men's basketball program on four-year probation for its failure to monitor recruiting activities.

Also, the NCAA also has reduced the Gaels' scholarships from 13 to 11 in the 2014-2015 and the 2015-2016 academic years and suspended head coach Randy Bennett for five games next season for failure to monitor his coaching staff's activities.

The punishments were handed after the NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions concluded a St. Mary's assistant coach "acted unethically in his recruitment of international prospects," the NCAA said in a statement.

The NCAA also imposed a two-year show cause for the former assistant coach, whose name was not mentioned in the statement but USA Today said it was Keith Moss.

"If the former assistant coach seeks employment at an NCAA member school during that two-year period, he and the school must appear before the Committee on Infractions to determine if the school should be subject to the show-cause procedures," the statement said.

According to the NCAA, the former assistant coach knowingly committed violations during the recruitment of three prospects.

The former assistant coach also acted unethically when he knowingly committed recruiting violations for three prospects.

"The majority of the recruiting activity by the former assistant coach centered on an international prospect and included impermissible travel, local transportation and the arrangement of host family accommodations," the NCAA said.

The NCAA also imposed other sanctions, such as head coach may not recruit off-campus during the 2013-14 academic year and elimination of foreign tours by the men's basketball team until the start of the 2017-18 season.

The NCAA also said the men's basketball team may not participate in a multiple-team event until the 2015-16 season and the men's basketball team may not receive skill instruction during the 2013-14 and 2014-15 seasons.

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NCAA Places St. Mary's Basketball Program on 4-year probation