Brother of Cassius Winston dead at 19

The brother of Michigan State standout Cassius Winston died Saturday night at the age of 19.

According to Chris Solari of the Detroit Free Press, Zachary Winston was struck and killed by a moving Amtrak train in Albion on Saturday night. An early investigation indicates that Winston stepped in front of the train intentionally. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

“I just can’t picture it. That family is so tight, they didn’t do anything without each other,” Pat Donnelly, Winston’s high school coach, told the Free Press. “He was the same Zach, all smiles, just a happy kid. Obviously, he was dealing with some things he didn’t put outward.”

Zachary Winston was the middle of three sons, and played as a reserve on Albion College’s basketball team. He and his younger brother Khy recently faced older brother Cassius in an exhibition game, though Zachary was unable to play due to a hamstring injury. Michigan State coach Tom Izzo set the exhibition up so the Winston brothers would be able to play against each other while Cassius, a senior, was still playing collegiately.