Syracuse puts Fine on leave after police inquiry

Syracuse puts Fine on leave after police inquiry

Published Nov. 18, 2011 12:06 a.m. ET

ESPN is reporting that two former Syracuse University ball boys say they were molested for years by an assistant basketball coach at the school.

Syracuse has placed longtime assistant coach Bernie Fine on administrative leave "in light of the new allegations and the Syracuse City Police investigation," the school said.

Bobby Davis, now 39, tells ESPN that Fine molested him beginning in 1984 and that the sexual contact continued until he was around 27. A ball boy for six years, Davis tells ESPN the alleged abuse occurred at Fine's home, at Syracuse basketball facilities and on team road trips, including the 1987 Final Four.

Davis' stepbrother, Mike Lang, also tells ESPN that Fine molested him starting when he was in fifth or sixth grade. Lang, now 45, also was a ball boy.

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Syracuse police say they are investigating allegations of child molestation and that the inquiry is in the early stages.

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