Tuscaloosa, Alabama - Alabama Crimson Tide basketball players finally broke their silence nearly two weeks after their teammate Darius Miles was arrested on murder charges.

On Friday, Alabama athletes spoke to the media for the first time about Miles' arrest for capital murder charges on January 15 for the shooting death of a 23-year-old near campus.

Crimson Tide sophomore Nimari Burnett and graduate student Noah Gurley spoke with reporters about how emotional the last few weeks have been amid the team's ongoing off-court drama.

"It's been a tough couple of weeks," Gurley said. "But we're still in the middle of the season, so we've just been leaning on each other. Still focused on playing games and winning."

And "playing games and winning" big showdowns is exactly what the Crimson Tide have been doing following Miles' shocking departure.

In their first showing afterward, Alabama put up a triumphant performance against Vanderbilt, defeating the Commodores 78-66.

Since then, Alabama has continued to dominate as the SEC's leading team and has maintained a perfect conference record.

"It hasn’t been easy, but that’s why we have each other," Burnett said about the team's progress over the past weeks. "That’s why we have the coaching staff to rely on. And we’re growing."

Alabama head coach Nate Oats also spoke out on Friday, revealing that Gurley has played a leading role this year, both on the court and throughout the situation of Miles' arrest.

"He’s smart, he’s a good kid, high-character kid, he’s been great to have in the program," Oats said.

Gurley, a 23-year-old native from Georgia, believes that his vulnerability has played an instrumental part in his leadership of the team. That includes the forward leading his teammates in prayer before each game.

"I think if they see that, then everybody will be vulnerable," Gurley said. "Praying, just talking to the guys. Checking in on them. Everybody looking out for each other in this situation. We established that. No one is strong enough to handle this on their own."

After narrowly defeating Mississippi State to keep their first place ranking in the SEC, Alabama will travel to Oklahoma on Saturday as part of a Big 12-SEC meetup at 2 PM EST.