LEXINGTON, Ky. — The NCAA banned a Lexington restaurateur from associating with University of Kentucky athletics for three years after he gave free meals to basketball players, a newspaper reported today.

The Lexington Herald-Leader reported that Joe Bologna can neither buy season tickets nor advertise in game programs or other UK publications. Players and recruits are not permitted to eat at his self-titled Italian restaurant.

Joe Bologna said a waitress mentioned to a UK athletics department staffer in the summer of 2008 that the players tipped well.

"But," the waitress added, "Joe always 'comps' their food."

UK compliance officer Sandy Bell wrote Southeastern Conference Commissioner Mike Slive telling him that the school was self-reporting the violation in November 2008.

Bell wrote Slive that "this willful violation" of NCAA rules would result in Bologna and his off-campus restaurant being disassociated from UK Athletics for three years, retroactive to August 2008.

Bologna, who is 64, told officials he did not charge the players for food and knew this was a rules violation.

"It just sort of got to where a few (basketball) players came in and it sort of became like family," he said. "I just liked taking care of them. I never asked for anything. I just loved the players."

Bologna, who opened his Italian restaurant in 1973 and later provided food for UK basketball's training table for four years, described the free meals as the next step in an evolutionary process of growing ever closer to the program. He also catered dinners at the home of Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart and former basketball coach Tubby Smith.

The UK players met must repay Bologna for the meals. No player's amount was greater than $84.95, Bell's letter to Slive said.

"I'm very disappointed in Joe," said Bell, who noted that the disassociation resulted in large part because Bologna initially tried to mislead her. "He should be helping us protect the program, not placing it at risk."

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Information from: Lexington Herald-Leader, http://www.kentucky.com