BY KAELYN JOHNSON / VN STAFF WRITER
The tragic death of Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna Bryant in a helicopter crash reverberated across the Detroit Mercy campus.
Bryant’s Mamba Mentality influenced many of Titans athletes.
Sophomore Marquis Moore plays for Detroit Mercy men’s basketball team and is a biology major.
When he heard the tragic news, Moore could not believe it.
“He was like a superhero that I believed would never die,” he said.
Moore grew up in Los Angeles, and was a huge Lakers fan who looked up to Kobe.
“His hard work and dedication to be great stood out to me,” he said. “No matter how hard things got he kept pushing through to be great.”
Sophomore Will Carroll wasn’t the biggest Lakers fan but he respected Bryant as a player.
“Kobe was the man,” Carroll said admiringly.
Learning about the crash and the families of the victims affected Carroll. He said that it was the saddest case he had heard of in a long time.
The accident took place on Sunday, Jan, 26, the same day as the Grammys in Los Angeles.
While people on social media were eager to see the latest red carpet looks, the world mourned the shocking loss of a legend.
Kamrin Morgan was devasted to hear about Bryant’s death on social media.
She said that it was almost as if within a millisecond her entire timeline was in shambles.
Although Morgan is not affiliated with sports, she has since been inspired to not take life for granted.
“Today it makes me want to embrace life more and live in moments more meticulously,” said Morgan.
Markiya McCormick, a freshman on the women’s basketball team, spent the afternoon out at a restaurant with her family.
All of a sudden, “the entire room felt eerie,” said McCormick.
She heard people nearby talking about someone who had passed away.
To her surprise, it was Bryant.
“You didn’t have to play a sport to feel his impact,” she said.
Through her sadness, she channeled her Mamba Mentality by extending her workout in the gym.
“You never really know when it’ll be your last chance to shoot the ball,” she said.
The memorial service for Bryant, his daughter and the other victims will be held on Feb. 24 at Los Angeles Staples Center.
The date of the service references Gianna’s jersey number 2 and Kobe’s number 24.
