‘DEVASTATING TIME’

Former UCLA Basketball Star Dies After Going Missing in Costa Rica

“I’m so stunned I don’t even have an emotion right now,” the 22-year-old’s high school basketball coach told the Los Angeles Times.

Jalen Hill—a key member of the University of California, Los Angeles, basketball team until he left last year to focus on his mental health—has died days after going missing in Costa Rica, his family confirmed. “We know Jalen has played a part in the lives of so many people,” the family wrote on Instagram. “We also acknowledge the role that so many of you have played in his. As we try to navigate this devastating time in our lives, we ask that you please give us time to grieve. Keep us in your thoughts and prayers.” Hill, 22, played on the Bruins team for three seasons, leaving in the spring of 2021 on account of his depression and anxiety. “I’m so stunned I don’t even have an emotion right now,” his high school basketball coach told the Los Angeles Times. “To hear something like this is next-level devastating.” UCLA coach Mick Cronin remembered Hill as “a warm-hearted young man with a great smile who has left us far too soon.” A cause of death was not released.