A basketball player in South Carolina was shot and killed Wednesday night outside a community center.
Police are investigating the murder of 17-year-old Allen Jerome Cooper Jr., a Lancaster (S.C.) junior as well as a member of the school’s basketball team.
Cooper died from a single gunshot wound, according to the Rock Hill Herald. Cooper was found dead outside the Hope on The Hill Community Center. Officers responded to reports of a shooting after a basketball game just after 9 p.m., Lancaster Police Chief Scott Grant told the Herald.
The basketball event and game was not a school function and was part of a recreational league, Lancaster Public Schools spokesman David Knight told the Herald.
Teammates said Cooper was a hard worker and a good friend who made everyone laugh, according to WSOC-TV. The station also reported that the game had just finished and a group of people were leaving when someone fired shots, hitting Cooper.
Police have not said if he was the target or if there is a motive behind the shooting.