Alabama is one of the top men’s basketball teams in the country and one of the favorites to win the NCAA championship.
The Crimson Tide program is also facing intense scrutiny over three players’ alleged involvement in the deadly shooting of Jamea Harris near campus early on Jan. 15. One-time reserve forward Darius Miles and another man are charged with capital murder.
And while Crimson Tide star Brandon Miller’s name has surfaced in official testimony as a potential witness and as a person who allegedly brought a gun to Miles, he has not been charged – and there’s no indication he will be. Police have said another player, guard Jaden Bradley, also was at the scene.
Despite this week’s new testimony and details in court, Alabama has so far kept up its winning ways. Here is what to know about the case:
Miles, who was swiftly dismissed from the team, and Michael Davis face capital murder charges for the shooting death of Harris, 23. Tuscaloosa Police investigator Brandon Culpepper testified Tuesday that Miles texted Miller to bring him his gun and that Miles did so. Bradley was also at the scene, police said, and Miller’s and Bradley’s cars blocked the one Harris was in.
An attorney for Miller said his client never handled or saw the gun and wasn’t involved in getting it into the hands of Davis, who is accused of pulling the trigger. Miller’s attorney also said Miller’s car didn’t block the one Harris was in. It wasn’t immediately clear whether Bradley had an attorney.
Harris was killed early on a Sunday morning on the Strip, a popular student hangout near campus that features bars and restaurants. According to Miller’s attorney, as reported by AL.com, Miles, Davis and Harris were all at a nightclub, and Miles and someone with Harris “apparently exchanged words.”
The gun used to kill Harris belonged to Miles and had been left in the back seat of Miller’s car, according to Miller’s attorney. Police say Miles did not fire the shots.
Alabama kicked Miles off the team and removed him from school shortly after the shootings. A day after Miles was charged, Coach Nate Oats said the team was going through “kind of a grieving process.”
The university and Oats said Miller is a cooperating witness and isn’t considered a suspect. The school said the decision to keep playing him is “based on all the facts that we have gathered.”
Oats walked back a comment from Tuesday, when he said Miller was in “the wrong place at the wrong time,” and apologized again in Wednesday’s postgame remarks for his choice of words.
“I’m not here to make excuses, but I want to make it clear that I didn’t have the details from the hearing that morning since I was coming straight from practice,” Oats said. “I used a poor choice of words, making it appear like I wasn’t taking this tragedy seriously, which we have throughout the course of it. I sincerely apologize for that.”
WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
(1) SOUTH CAROLINA 73, TENNESSEE 60: Zia Cooke scored 19 points and Kierra Fletcher had 15 as visiting South Carolina (28-0, 15-0 Southeastern Conference) spoiled Tennessee’s pack-the-paint strategy.
The Gamecocks clinched at least a tie for the regular-season conference title.
The Lady Volunteers (20-10, 12-3) jammed the middle, trying to limit opportunities for star Aliyah Boston and daring the Gamecocks to beat them from the perimeter. Boston finished with 11 points.
(3) STANFORD 73, (21) COLORADO 62: Haley Jones scored 13 of her 23 points over the two overtimes as the Cardinal (27-3, 15-2 Pac-12) beat the Buffaloes (21-7, 12-5) in Boulder, Colorado.
(8) UTAH 101, CALIFORNIA 76: Alissa Pili scored 26 points and Jenna Johnson added 21 to help host Utah (24-3, 14-3 Pac-12) beat California (13-15, 4-13).
Returning from a sprained ankle that kept her out last game, Pili dominated her 26 minutes on the court and the Utes built enough of a lead to allow her to get some extra rest.
(10) NOTRE DAME 76, GEORGIA TECH 53: Olivia Miles scored 13 points and Kylee Watson added 12 points and 10 rebounds to help host Notre Dame (23-4, 14-3 ACC) rout Georgia Tech (13-15, 4-13 ACC).
(12) MICHIGAN 71, RUTGERS 53: Emily Kiser scored a career-high 34 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead Michigan (21-7, 11-6 Big Ten) over Rutgers (11-18, 5-12).
WOMEN’S LACROSSE
COLORADO COLLEGE 14, BATES 10: Tobin Lonergan scored three straight goals to break a 9-9 tie in the fourth quarter, lifting the Tigers (1-0) over the Bobcats (1-1) in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
Trish Balser and Maddy Roelofs led Bates with three goals apiece.
FOOTBALL
DIVERSITY REPORT: Women remain significantly underrepresented in leadership positions at the Football Subdivision level, a new study shows.
Thursday’s report card from The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport issued another F for gender hiring, a C for racial hiring and an overall grade of D+ for 2022. Those grades largely look as they have in past editions of the study, which have shown leadership positions like president or chancellor, athletic director and conference commissioner are dominated by white men.
TIDES director and lead report author Richard Lapchick called the lack of significant change “incredibly discouraging.”
“I felt that there was a shift in attitudes at all levels in sport after the murder of George Floyd and during that period of the racial reckoning,” Lapchick told the The Associated Press. “And the results that just haven’t proven that out in these leadership positions.
Women made up only 22.9% of presidents and chancellors, up slightly from last year’s figure (20.8%) after sitting as low as 13.8% in 2019. The number of women working as athletic directors dropped from 13 to 10 (7.6%) in 2022, with six of those in Power Five conferences (Duke, Missouri, Pittsburgh, Vanderbilt, Virginia and Washington).
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