Former Sacred Heart Guard Koreem Ozier Dead at 27 After Racine Shooting

Ozier, who later played at Louisiana-Monroe and overseas, died of a gunshot wound in Wisconsin on Sunday night.

Koreem Ozier, a former Sacred Heart men's basketball player, died after a shooting in Racine, Wisconsin, on Sunday night. He was 27. Multiple reports say the cause was a gunshot wound to the chest.

Racine police said the shooting followed an altercation with a man who has not been identified. The death was classified as a homicide and considered an isolated incident. No arrest has been made and no suspect is in custody.

Sacred Heart coach Anthony Latina, who coached Ozier during the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons, described him as a great kid with a heart of gold who had a difficult life. Latina also noted that former UConn standout and NBA veteran Caron Butler, who is from Racine and is now an assistant coach with the Miami Heat, served as a mentor to Ozier.

Ozier scored 14 points per game in each of his two seasons at Sacred Heart before transferring to Louisiana-Monroe, where he averaged 11.4 points as a junior and 11.2 as a senior in 2021-22. He went on to play professionally in Morocco and China.