By The Associated Press

MONTGOMERY, Ala.  –  Alabama State University basketball player Deshean Porchea collapsed and died after playing in a pickup game on campus.The 19-year-old sophomore from Rochester, N.Y., passed out after walking off the court following the game with fellow students and never regained consciousness, the university said. He was pronounced dead at Jackson Hospital Wednesday afternoon.

“He was just a good all-around kid,” said ASU head coach Lewis Jackson, who heard the news while on a recruiting trip in Florida. “He played with a contagious fire that carried over to his teammates. He was a good person. It is a great loss to our team and our university.”

University spokeswoman Janel Bell said an autopsy was being performed Thursday to try to determine the cause of death.

Porchea, a reserve guard, played at Luella High School in McDonough, Ga. He averaged 2.1 points and was fourth on the team in assists last season for Alabama State, which won the Southwestern Athletic Conference regular season title.

School officials said Porchea had seemed in good spirits before passing out, and there was nothing unusual about his behavior.

“Absolutely no one saw this coming — there were no signs,” said ASU President Joe Lee, who was at the hospital with Porchea’s friends and teammates Wednesday. “This was a kid who was in the best shape of his life. He was in tremendous shape. The team had just come off a SWAC championship just a month ago. There was no reason for this. It’s just baffling.”

Alabama State planned a candlelight vigil Thurdsay evening to mourn Porchea’s death.