A memo written by an assistant Iowa...

A memo written by an assistant Iowa coach, detailing alleged payoffs from University of Illinois officials to college basketball recruits, is untrue, said Deon Thomas, an Illinois athlete who is the focus of an NCAA inquiry.

The memo, written by Iowa assistant coach Bruce Pearl and revealed last week by the Chicago Tribune, said that Thomas rejected several financial lures to attend Illinois but finally took the money in order to help his grandmother.