The NCAA will conduct another round of in-person interviews in Honolulu this week in its investigation of the University of Hawaii men’s basketball program.
A representative of the NCAA Enforcement Division was to arrive on Oahu on Tuesday and is expected to interview head coach Gib Arnold and his two remaining assistants, Benjy Taylor and Brandyn Akana.
It is said to be at least the third time the NCAA has talked to Arnold and his coaches since late March when investigator Mike Sheridan first made a visit to the UH Manoa campus.
"They are doing some final interviews, that is my understanding," athletic director Ben Jay said.
More than 20 people, including coaches, players, staff and supporters, are said to have been interviewed since March.
Some interviews were conducted over the phone from the NCAA’s headquarters in Indianapolis.
Jay declined to discuss the substance of the impending interviews saying, "I can’t get into that."
But players and others who said they have talked to the NCAA said they have been questioned about matters such as practice time and player benefits.
The NCAA began the investigation shortly after an alteration was discovered on a form used to admit a foreign athlete in January and UH self-reported it to the collegiate governing body. Missouri transfer Stefan Jankovic of Ontario, Canada, was the only player added to the team during the 2013-14 season.
Assistant coach Akana was suspended for 30 days by UH and missed 12 of the team’s final 14 games.
UH has not discussed the reasons for the suspension. It did not acknowledge the investigation until May 14, when it released a statement that there is "an ongoing NCAA investigation of potential rules violations." In the release, UH pledged to "cooperate fully with and assist the NCAA enforcement staff."
Akana and Taylor remain with Arnold’s coaching staff, but two former members, assistant Scott Fisher and director of operations Chris McMillian, recently accepted coaching jobs at junior colleges on the mainland.
Jay, who attended meetings of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics on Monday in Orlando, Fla., is expected to return Tuesday. But Jay said, "I’m not meeting with them (the NCAA). The timing of my (return) has nothing to do with them."
UH President David Lassner said he has been briefed on the NCAA investigation.
"I was briefed at the very beginning and I will wait to see what the NCAA has to say," Lassner said.
Under NCAA policy, interview subjects are allowed to have legal counsel present.
Some members of the NCAA Enforcement Division took part in the 2014 NCAA Regional Rules Seminar in San Diego last week. It isn’t known if they spoke with UH officials at that time. At least three UH officials are said to have attended the sessions.