Basketball star, 2 others sentenced in drug murder

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A former basketball standout and two other young men will serve nearly three decades behind bars for killing a high school drug dealer.

Media outlets report that 19-year-old former Atlee High School star Kevin Drayton, 19-year-old Da'Von Byars and 20-year-old Xavia Highsmith were sentenced Monday in Hanover Circuit Court. All three were convicted in October.

They had faced up to life in prison.

Police said 16-year-old Brett Wells was found shot through the heart Jan. 21, 2012, when a drug transaction he'd arranged at his home near Richmond turned into an armed robbery. Wells had arranged to sell 4 ounces of high-grade marijuana to the three for more than $1,300.

Highsmith was the gunman, but all three were convicted of murder.