NCAA charges Rick Pitino but not Louisville over dorm scandal

— -- Hall of Fame coach Rick Pitino has been charged with failing to monitor a staff member in his basketball program, but Louisville otherwise escaped potentially serious penalties stemming from an NCAA investigation into allegations made by a former escort.

The NCAA's notice of allegations, released Thursday, includes four Level I charges, with one to Pitino, two directed at former director of basketball operations Andre McGee and the fourth aimed at former assistant Brandon Williams. The university was not charged with any violations, including a lack of institutional control or failure to monitor, the two most egregious NCAA infractions.

Pitino, however, could face a steep penalty. Although the NCAA did not say that Pitino was complicit nor is he charged with committing a violation himself, it alleges that the coach "did not monitor" McGee and failed to "spot-check" his program, including "actively looking for red flags."

Pitino has repeatedly denied any knowledge of the accusations made by former escort Katina Powell. In her October 2015 book, "Breaking Cardinal Rules," Powell alleged that McGee paid her and other escorts thousands of dollars and gave them tickets to games in exchange for sex with recruits and players in the players' dormitory, Minardi Hall. The NCAA agreed, alleging that McGee paid some $5,400 to the escorts.

The NCAA alleges that McGee's payments, made for at least 17 athletes and/or recruits, can be construed as impermissible benefits.

What Pitino did or did not know might not matter. Under the most recent NCAA enforcement legislation, enacted in 2014, a head coach is presumed to be responsible for the actions of any and all staff members and can be held accountable for their violations, even if the coach is unaware.

Not knowing what happened, in other words, is no longer a defense. The NCAA's stance is that the head coach should have known. However, Pitino can appeal the charges.

Using case precedent, coaches charged similarly have faced multigame suspensions. Last season, Syracuse's Jim Boeheim and then- SMU coach Larry Brown each were forced to sit for nine games over violations.

In a joint statement, acting university president Dr. Neville Pinto and athletic director Tom Jurich said they intend to dispute the charges lobbed at Pitino.

"We believe that Mr. McGee acted furtively and note that the NOA does not indicate that any other university employee besides Mr. McGee had knowledge of these activities," the statement reads. "We are confident in Coach Pitino and we know he is and always has been committed to NCAA compliance."

McGee, who had moved on to and later resigned from? Missouri-Kansas City?weeks after Powell's book was released, refused to talk to NCAA investigators. Williams, who was on the Louisville staff for one year as a program assistant, refused to turn over phone records. Refusing to cooperate with NCAA investigators, considered major breaches of ethical conduct, are typically dealt the harshest penalties.

Acknowledging that violations likely did occur and in the hopes of mitigating further penalties, Louisville last season self-imposed a postseason ban, cut scholarships and reduced its recruiting access. The NCAA noted those efforts in its document, recognizing the "imposition of meaningful corrective measures and/or penalties."

"These allegations underscore why it was appropriate for the University to impose strict penalties on our basketball program earlier this year," the university statement read. "... The penalties we imposed were among the most severe penalties ever self-imposed by an NCAA member."

Earlier this month,?Pitino said the school's self-imposed sanctions should be enough to satisfy the NCAA.

The school has 90 days to respond to the NCAA's notice and dispute any of its findings. The NCAA will then have 60 days to review that response. That timetable, coupled with the Committee on Infractions meeting schedule, means that neither Pitino nor the university will learn of penalties until at least the spring of 2017.

The university will hold a news conference at noon ET Thursday, when Pitino, Jurich and Pinto will discuss the NCAA notice of allegations.

In conjunction with the university, the NCAA hired two consultants -- Chuck Smrt and Steve Thompson -- to lead the investigation and conduct more than 90 interviews.

Information from The Associated Press contributed to this report.