According to UH, the player was eligible when he enrolled in 1999 but became ineligible when the NCAA amended its rules in August 2002, months after the school won its first NCAA men’s team title in May 2002.

UH also said the NCAA deleted the team’s place in the final four standings and fined the school $5,000 for what it ruled a secondary infraction.

Costas Theocharidis, a four-time All-America player, told The Advertiser last month he was the target of the NCAA investigation.
Theocharidis was a member of a professional team in Greece before enrolling at UH in August 1999.

Theocharidis also is required to return all individual awards from the 2002 season.

NCAA rules stipulate that to be eligible, a student-athlete must not accept money, have an agent or be a member of a professional team.

UH believed Theocharidis was eligible because the rules regarding playing on a professional team allowed for broader interpretation.

UH athletic director Herman Frazier said today the school will appeal because the rule should have grandfathered student-athletes who already have started their playing careers.

Frazier said the player did not accept money, nor signed a contract, but did play on a professional team in Greece.