CALABASAS, Calif. — Matt Mauser, whose wife Christina was killed along with NBA legend Kobe Bryant and seven others Sunday, describes her as "extraordinary."
Mauser and the other passengers were heading to a basketball game when their chopper went down in Calabasas, California.
Mauser was a basketball coach at Harbor Day School in Newport Beach, where Bryant's daughter attended school.
She and Bryant also coached a Mamba Academy basketball team that included "Gigi" Bryant and two other girls who died in the crash.
She was also a mother of three.
Matt Mauser opened up about the family's loss on "Today Show" Monday morning.
"I got three small kids, and I'm trying to figure out how to navigate life with three kids and no mom," Mauser said. "I'm scared. I think more than anything I'm a little scared about the future."
"She was incredibly witty, funny, funny like nobody you've ever met," he said. "She was warm, she was incredibly bright, she was technologically incredibly savvy. She could figure out anything."
Mauser said both he and his wife were close with Bryant, who also died in the helicopter crash at age 41.
"He saw what an amazing mind [Christina] had for basketball," Mauser said. "She was an amazing mind of defense for basketball, so he brought her on. They called her the mother of defense, 'MOD.'"
Bryant shared a photo with Mauser and the team members on Instagram in August.
“It’s horrible. I’ve got three small kids, and I’m trying to figure out how to navigate life with three kids and no mom.” -Matt Mauser, husband of Christina Mauser, who is one of the victims in LA-area helicopter crash pic.twitter.com/TxESfk5VvU
— TODAY (@TODAYshow) January 27, 2020
Mauser confirmed on Facebook that his wife was a victim of the crash shortly after the accident occurred on Sunday. "My kids and I are devastated. We lost our beautiful wife and mom today in a helicopter crash. Please respect our privacy. Thank you for all the well wishes they mean so much," his post reads.
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