MCKINNEY, Texas (AP) — Closing arguments were set for Tuesday in the trial of a Texas teenager charged with fatally stabbing a 17-year-old track athlete at a high school meet during a confrontation that students said rapidly escalated in the stadium's bleachers.
Karmelo Anthony, now 19, did not testify in his own defense over the killing of Austin Metcalf, whose death stunned a booming Dallas suburb where the two students attended different schools.
If convicted, Anthony faces up to life in prison.
Over the course of the nearly weeklong trial, Anthony's attorneys have sought to convince jurors that Anthony was forced to defend himself under a tent belonging to the track team of Frisco Memorial High School, where Metcalf was in his junior year. Several schools were competing at a rainy track meet, and Metcalf and others had repeatedly told Anthony to leave, witnesses testified, leading to an escalating confrontation.
Witnesses at trial who were in the tent described Anthony as the aggressor. According to the arrest report, Anthony at one point told Metcalf: “Touch me and see what happens.”
Several students told jurors that Metcalf then pushed Anthony, who then pulled out a knife and stabbed him in the chest.
Prosecutors called the stabbing an unjustified attack and not a case of self-defense.
Testimony at the trial leaned heavily on the recollections of teenagers who described being shocked at the tragedy at a community sports event. Many questions centered on team culture at track meets and the confrontation in the tent.
One teammate told jurors that Anthony was “distraught” after the stabbing. Judge John Roach Jr. ordered that the names of teenage witnesses not be made public.
“I was hearing him say, ‘I told him not to touch me,’” the teenager said.
Vincent Hooper, an area track coach who approached Anthony, asked him what had happened. Anthony replied that he had stabbed someone who had “put his hands on me,” Hooper recalled last week.
The death last year quickly drew wide attention, in part because of social media posts that amplified the case in racial terms. Anthony is Black; Metcalf was white.
After the stabbing, Jeff Metcalf, Austin's father, condemned those who seized on the race of the teens. Prosecutors also opened the trial by saying race had nothing to do with the case.
Supporters for Karmelo Anthony demonstrate in front of the Collin County courthouse Thursday, June 4, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
A Collin County seriff drives past the front of the county courthouse Thursday, June 4, 2026, in McKinney, Texas. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)
NEW YORK (AP) — Victor Wembanyama sat in Gramercy Park on Sunday and drew the statue of 19th-century Shakespearean actor Edwin Booth.
It was “not bad, pretty good,” Wembanyama said. Turns out, it was the perfect mind-clearing activity that helped him shake off his miss at the buzzer in Game 2 and take over Game 3 of the NBA Finals, preventing the San Antonio Spurs from getting pushed to the brink of elimination.
“I really tried to relax,” Wembanyama said. “The playoffs is like a whirlwind. It’s hard to put your head out of the water, and sometimes it’s like I don’t even (have) to watch the game back, by the way. I just need a little time off, let my brain cool down and recover — recover as much for the body as for the mind.”
Wembanyama made the first two shots he attempted on Monday night on the way to scoring 32 points in a 115-111 victory at the New York Knicks. He had nine points in the first five minutes, including an alley-oop on the first basket of the game and a dunk on the next possession
Coach Mitch Johnson said getting the ball to Wembanyama inside was not a strategy different than any other game.
“We never told Victor don’t shoot an open 3-point shot, even if it’s early in the game,” Johnson said. “We wanted to put pressure on the paint and the rim.”
Wembanyama was a force on both ends of the court, especially late when it mattered most.
After delivering the pass to Keldon Johnson for his layup that tied the score at 76 with 5:38 left in the third, Wembanyama hit a 3-pointer from 29 feet out to put the Spurs ahead. He scored the first basket of what turned into a dominant fourth quarter, later drawing a foul and making a pair of free throws for San Antonio’s 99th and 100th points.
“Wemby played great,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said. “He had probably seven lob dunks because we didn’t follow attention to detail and try to take that away.”
With four minutes left and the Knicks looking to stage another comeback, the 7-foot-4 big man from France surged to block what looked to be an easy layup by Landry Shamet.
Wembanyama finished with eight rebounds, six assists and three blocks in what was close to a must-win situation. No team has fallen behind 3-0 in the finals and come back to win the series.
“I don’t think any of us are surprised or expect anything different than a strong performance and him being on his front foot in terms of being in attack mode,” Mitch Johnson said.
Teammates were not at all worried about Wembanyama in the aftermath of the 22-year-old star clanking a shot off the rim that would have been the Game 2 winner. Johnson said his recommendation was to shoot again and made clear the Spurs want the ball in Wembanyama's hands at important moments.
Before the game, Brown said of containing Wembanyama, "You hope you can make him work at the end of the day, and you hope he misses some shots.”
Wembanyama missed seven shots from the floor, going 11 of 18 and silencing the crowd that at one point directed a vulgar chant his way. Asked if he was becoming the latest New York villain, he quipped: “I guess. I’m nowhere near Trae Young level, though.”
He could surpass the longtime Atlanta Hawks and now-Washington Wizards guard as soon as Game 4 Wednesday, when Wembanyama gets the chance to help the Spurs try to even the series in Game 4 back at Madison Square Garden.
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) passes as New York Knicks guard Jordan Clarkson defends during the first half of Game 3 of the NBA Finals basketball series, Monday, June 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama is introduced prior to Game 3 of the NBA Finals basketball series against the New York Knicks, Monday, June 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama, left, tries to drive past New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns during Game 3 of the NBA Finals basketball series, Monday, June 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) pulls down a rebound over New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) during Game 3 of the NBA Finals basketball series, Monday, June 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) dunks as New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) looks on during the second half of Game 3 of the NBA Finals basketball series, Monday, June 8, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura)
