Greg Byrne explains how tragedy overshadowed basketball success, feeling on 2022-2023 team

Alabama was the talk of the college basketball world last season. Part of that was because the Crimson Tide were the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament. They entered March Madness at 29-5 and as champions of the SEC. However, the other part of that was because of the murder of Jamea Harris that put the spotlight on them to end the season and saw Darius Miles be indicted while several others were, truthfully or not, connected by reports, including one Brandon Miller.

In a recent interview with ‘The Next Round’ at the Regions Tradition Pro-Am, Alabama AD Greg Byrne put the Tide’s basketball season in perspective. To start, though, he obviously addressed the loss of Jamea Harris and how devastating it was for everyone involved.

“We obviously had a tragedy (where) a young woman lost her life, right? It was awful,” said Byrne.

Still, from there, he went on to applaud Nate Oat’s program for what they accomplished in ’22-’23. He said they were an easy group for him and the university to root for. It may not have ended as they’d hoped with them falling short in the Sweet 16. If nothing else, though, it has everyone in Tuscaloosa very excited for what’s in store for Alabama on the court moving forward.

“(I’ve) been around college basketball my entire life. I loved this group, I loved these kids. Our fanbase was behind them and supporting them,” Byrne said. “When we got to Louisville, San Diego State played really well. (They) deserved to win. But I was proud of this team.”

“They were good guys, they were easy to get behind and support. And they were a lot of fun to watch,” said Byrne. “I think with what Nate’s done? We’re going to have a lot of other fun teams to watch in the future as well.”

Harris’ death overshadowed just about everything that Alabama did. A court indicted Miles back in March for the charges in her capital murder case. He has since entered into a not-guilty plea. While that took place off the floor, many shifted their eyes to some of the other connected players, specifically Miller considering his status as a high-profile player and NBA prospect.

In a vacuum, what Alabama did was worthy of being one of the school’s best seasons, if not the best. Even so, as remorseful as everyone around the program was throughout the process, it didn’t change what happened and, in the end, may not ever change how the sport remembers them.