College athletes and supporters are rallying behind the University of Utah’s women’s basketball team after their coach revealed in a post-game press conference that players experienced racism in the Idaho city they were staying in for the opening weekend of the NCAA Division I tournament and had to change hotels.

Head coach Lynne Roberts said her team — composed of Black, Latina and white athletes — relocated from Coeur d’Alene, Idaho closer to Spokane, Washington on Friday after experiencing “racial hate crimes” in which people drove by, revved their trucks and shouted the N-word. Coeur d’Alene is a resort city in North Idaho about 30 miles away from Spokane.

The team arrived Thursday to face off against Gonzaga University. Utah lost against the home team Monday night 77-66.

“It was incredibly upsetting for all of us,” Roberts said. “For our players and staff to not feel safe in an NCAA Tournament environment, it’s messed up. There’s so much diversity on a college campus, and so you’re just not exposed to that very often, but racism is real, and it happens, and it’s awful.”

The team was one of three staying in Coeur d’Alene due to a lack of hotel space in Spokane. Roberts said the NCAA and Gonzaga University helped them move hotels after some men’s teams were eliminated, but it was a “distraction and unfortunate” experience in what should have been a “joyous” time for the team. One other team moved locations as a precautionary measure.

From fan’s racist jeers to exploitation by mostly white administrators, racism in college sports is nothing new. According to a USC study, Black men made up just over 2.4 percent of all undergraduate students at 65 schools across the country with top sports programs. They composed more than half of the men’s basketball and football teams on those campuses, however. Racism and lack of overall support impacts these students, with more than half of all Black athletes not obtaining a degree as institutions make millions off their name and image.

The NCAA said in a statement Tuesday that they were “devastated” to learn about the treatment experienced by Utah’s team.

When asked how the NCAA could better support its student athletes against racism, associate director of external communications Gail Dent said the question is valid and would best be answered by their member schools, who each have programs “to bridge gaps and to help student-athletes of all identities feel welcome.” She added that the NCAA hosts an Inclusion Forum each year to discuss how to address these issues.

Utah’s deputy athletics director Charmelle Green, who is Black, told Salt Lake City’s KSL News that players on the women’s basketball team, band members and cheerleaders were walking to a local restaurant for dinner on Thursday when someone sped by yelling racial obscenities. According to reports, the same truck driver and others followed the women after they left the restaurant.

Authorities said crimes investigated in this incident include malicious harassment and disorderly conduct. The team filed a police report and the situation is under investigation with cooperation from the FBI, CNN reported. Officials said on Wednesday that they are working with the University of Utah to interview witnesses.

“Hate speech in any form is repugnant, shameful and must never be tolerated,” Gonzaga University said in a statement on social media Monday. “We worked hard to secure the opportunity to serve as the host institution, and our first priority is and must be the safety and welfare of all student-athletes, coaches, families and supporting staff.

“We are frustrated and deeply saddened to know that what should always be an amazing visitor and championship experience was in any way compromised by this situation, for it in no way reflects the values, standards, and beliefs to which we at Gonzaga University hold ourselves accountable.”

On Tuesday, Coeur d’Alene Mayor Jim Hammond condemned the “appalling treatment of the female college athletes who were visiting.”

This was Utah’s women’s basketball’s third consecutive season winning at least one NCAA Tournament game under Roberts, with its 20th March Madness appearance in school history.