Kelly Lyell

kellylyell@coloradoan.com

CSU basketball player Emmanuel Omogbo's parents died early Tuesday morning in a house fire that also claimed the lives of his sister’s 2-year-old twins.

Samson Omogbo, 63, and Caroline Omogbo, 55, and the twins were pulled out of a burning home in Chillum, Maryland — a Washington, D.C., suburb — about 2 a.m., the Associated Press reported.

The Omogbos died at the scene, Prince George's County Fire Chief Marc Bashoor said, while the twins, identified as Anna and Israel Omijie, were taken to a hospital, where they died.

“This is absolutely heartbreaking for Emmanuel, his family and for all of us that know him,” Colorado State University coach Larry Eustachy said in a statement issued by the school. “There are no words to describe how it felt to hear this terrible news earlier today. They were a beautiful family that I enjoyed getting to know. The entire Colorado State men’s basketball team, athletic program and university will be there to support and help Emmanuel in any way we can through this incredibly tough time in his life.”

STEPHENS: Painting Larry Eustachy's picture of CSU basketball

Firefighters found flames showing from both floors and from three sides of the home when they arrived, and frantic family members told them others were still trapped inside, Bashoor said. Firefighters quickly went inside and pulled four people from the burning house.

“They had to make an aggressive attack of that fire while also trying to get inside and pull those people out,” Bashoor said, noting that firefighters’ efforts were complicated by cold and ice. “They got in there and got the people out pretty quickly. Unfortunately, their injuries were too severe.”

The twins’ mother, Emmanuel Omogbo’s sister, jumped from a second-story window to escape the fire and suffered injuries that are not life-threatening, he said. Two other people escaped the home safely. Bashoor said there was no evidence of smoke detectors in the home the family was renting. The cause of the fire is under investigation, but he said there was no evidence of anything suspicious.

Emmanuel Omogbo, a junior on CSU men’s basketball team, practiced with the Rams (10-8, 2-3 Mountain West) on Tuesday and traveled with the team to Colorado Springs for Wednesday night’s game at Air Force (10-8, 1-4). He declined comment on the tragedy through a school spokesman.

LYELL: Win or lose, CSU playing exciting basketball

“We’re all a family, and I think stuff like that brings us closer together,” teammate Tiel Daniels said. “We come together like the band of brothers that we are, and we kind of feed off each other’s energy, and we try to help pick him up as best as we can.

“If he wants to talk about it, then we’re here to listen. If he needs a shoulder, we’re here for him, too.”

Omogbo, a 6-foot-8 forward who was born in Nigeria and grew up in Hyattsville, Maryland, has started all 18 games and is averaging 11.4 points and 7.4 rebounds a game in his first season at CSU. He spent the past two seasons at South Plains College in Texas, helping his team advance to the title game of last year’s National Junior College Athletic Association tournament. He averaged 17.0 points and 10.1 rebounds a game last season and was named Texas’ junior-college player of the year.

Follow reporter Kelly Lyell at twitter.com/KellyLyell and facebook.com/KellyLyell.news.

Lyell: Win or lose, CSU playing exciting basketball