Jamirah Shutes, a guard for the Memphis women’s college basketball team, has been charged with assault for allegedly punching Elissa Brett, a player for Bowling Green, during the handshake line after the Falcons’ win in the third round of the Women’s National Invitational Tournament (WNIT) on Thursday evening.
On Friday, the Bowling Green State University Police Department released a press release confirming that Shutes, a fifth-year player for Memphis, was charged following an “unwarranted physical incident” with Brett at the end of BGSU’s 73-60 win, Fox News reported.
“Violence is never acceptable, and our priority remains the health, safety and support of our student-athlete, who is recovering and doing well. This is an active investigation in conjunction with the City of Bowling Green Prosecutor, and no further comment is available at this time,” the statement continued.
Absolutely hate to see this…Elissa Brett punched in the face after Bowling Green's #WNIT victory over Memphis
She fell to the ground after being hit but fortunately was able to walk back to the locker room with some assistance. Hopefully she's okay! pic.twitter.com/3UxtvJaUoV
— H. Tyler Seggerman (@TylerSeggerman) March 24, 2023
According to reports, as both teams were lining up to shake hands after the Sweet 16 game between Memphis and BGSU, Shutes stopped when she reached Brett and allegedly punched her. BGSU Athletics is conducting its own review of the incident, in addition to the police investigation, the report said.
“Shutes then sucker-punched Brett, forcing her to the floor, according to police,” Fox News added.
On Friday, Memphis issued a statement confirming that it was collaborating with local authorities regarding the alleged assault.
“The incident that occurred following Thursday’s women’s basketball game was extremely unfortunate and certainly not consistent with, or representative of, our expectations for our programs and student-athletes,” the statement said.
“Because the incident occurred after the game, jurisdiction falls in the hands of local authorities, and we are cooperating fully with their process. To be respectful of that process, we will not comment further until it is complete.”
