Alabama’s Aden Holloway is facing a career-ending felony charge, but a chilling phone reveal just crushed his March Madness hopes

Any hopes of Alabama Crimson Tide basketball star Aden Holloway returning to the court in time to aid their March Madness run may have just evaporated, thanks to new evidence prosecutors have submitted. Prosecutors are now alleging they found evidence of “drug transactions” while searching Holloway’s phone, according to BroBible. This is a pretty tough blow for Holloway, who was arrested on a felony drug charge.

When authorities searched Holloway’s apartment, they reportedly found a significant amount of marijuana, 2.1 pounds to be exact along with drug paraphernalia. Holloway told officers at the scene that he “only smokes” and doesn’t sell or distribute drugs. In theory, that could sound plausible if someone were buying in bulk for personal use, or to share with friends over a longer period.

The new evidence coming from his phone makes that explanation a lot harder to believe. Prosecutors stated in a complaint, “The money is being seized due to seeing drug transactions on Holloway’s phone, with people texting that they were going to get up with him after the season.”

This could be the part that keeps him off the court for good

They also pointed out that Holloway had “smaller denominations in his possession, which is indicative of narcotic sales,” and that the marijuana was found “in separate packing, from plastic bags to prepackaged marijuana to vacuum-sealed bags.” This kind of packaging and the texts really paint a different picture. Holloway’s attorney, Jason Neff, isn’t taking this lying down. He’s arguing that the police broke the law by searching his client’s apartment in the first place.

Neff said that once the case moves forward, they plan to “challenge the basis of the search with a motion to suppress evidence for the violation of his Fourth Amendment rights.” It’s definitely possible, and maybe even likely, that Holloway could end up with some sort of plea agreement that keeps him out of jail. Honestly, his days playing basketball for the Crimson Tide really seem like they’re behind him now.

It’s a shame, because in March, strong guard play can make all the difference in a tournament run. Even without Holloway, though, the Crimson Tide hasn’t missed a beat. They’ve still got some elite guard play, and they’ve been performing incredibly well. In fact, Alabama recently put on what some are calling their best performance of the season in the NCAA Tournament.

To do that in such a high-stakes environment is impressive enough, but it’s especially remarkable when they’re doing it without their second-best scorer.