Spring Valley’s Dunbar wins dunk contest, Bishop Gorman’s Amadi takes 3-point title at Beach Ball Classic
Spring Valley 6-foot-5 senior Malik Dunbar wasn’t sure what dunk he was going to do when he went into a dunk-off with Sagemont (Fla.) senior Prince Ali.
It’s a good thing he had teammate PJ Dozier handy.
Dozier suggested he throw Dunbar an alley-oop from halfway up the bleachers, and Dunbar caught the long pass and slammed it to top Ali for the title.
“I honestly didn’t know what to do until PJ came up to me,” Dunbar said. “He started going up to the stands and threw it, I had no idea he was going up there. I just caught the pass and laid it down and I won it with it.”
Ali had the highest total of any contestant in the first round with 58 points. Dunbar followed with 53, along with teammate Javandi Myers (52) and Bishop Gorman (Nev.) big man Chase Jeter (50). All four made it to the final round.
After Jeter scored a 26 and Myers scored a 22, Dunbar decided he was going to show off.
Dunbar grabbed a small child and was prepared to dunk over him, but decided that wasn’t going to be enough. He then grabbed two more children and Dunbar laid down an impressive dunk as he cleared the three kids for a perfect score of 30.
“That one was good, I thought,” Dunbar said of his dunk in the final round. “I grabbed that first kid and was like, ‘Nah, I can get over a few more,’ and I did. It was a pretty cool dunk.”
Following Dunbar’s final-round dunk, Ali did a between-the-legs jam from the baseline that brought the crowd to its feet and the judges gave Ali a perfect 30 as well as it went into the dunk-off.
After Dunbar’s alley-oop from Dozier, Ali imitated current NBA player Vince Carter’s honey dip dunk – in which you shove your arm and ball through the hoop and hang by your elbow – that he showcased in the 2000 NBA Dunk Contest.
Ali received just a 26 from the judges as Dunbar claimed the trophy.
“I didn’t think I was going to win,” Dunbar said. “He had that between the legs dunk that was so nice and that last one was good, too.”
Dunbar had competed in dunk contest and won at a tournament in Augusta, Ga., but admitted this one took the cake.
“It wasn’t as big as this,” Dunbar said of his previous dunk contest win. “But this one was great; it’s a blessing.”
Although the dunk contest is just a small part of Dunbar and the Spring Valley basketball team’s visit to the Beach Ball Classic, he said it’s been an overall great experience but has his sights set on winning a title.
“We want to win the tournament and go all the way, that’s all,” Dunbar said.
Amadi wins 3-point contest
Bishop Gorman’s Ugo Amadi kept up with some of the best shooters in the country during the Beach Ball Classic 3-point contest on Sunday.
When Amadi made it to the final round, he shined.
Duke signee Luke Kennard of Franklin (Ohio), Seth Towns of Northland (Ohio) and Jalek Felton of Mullins joined Amadi in the final round, and Amadi’s 16 points topped Kennard’s 15 as he claimed the 3-point contest crown.
Felton finished with 14 in the final round and Towns had 10.
“I mean it’s what I do but it wasn’t easy, though; there were great competitors,” Amadi said. “Luke, Seth, Jalek, they’re all great shooters. I just came out with the win and I’m grateful for it.”
Kennard, who went off for a Beach Ball Classic single game record 52 points on Friday, put up the highest total in the first round with 25. Amadi and Towns followed with 23, and Felton had 22.
Amadi noticed the crowd got behind him as he appeared to be the underdog going into the final round. Amadi proved the doubters wrong, too.
“This tournament is great, the atmosphere is great,” he said. “I was feeling good and developed a rhythm. We won [Saturday against Socastee] and I had 14 points and felt fine then and tonight my shooting was just on point.”
Bishop Gorman won the 2009 Beach Ball Classic and like Dunbar, who won the dunk contest, Amadi said he and the Gaels want to come away with a championship trophy.
But only one team can do so.
“Our goal is to win the whole thing,” Amadi said. “That’s our main goal but we have to take it one step at a time. Play consistently, play as a team and we’ll come away with the championship. That’s what we want.”
This story was originally published December 28, 2014 at 10:39 PM with the headline "Spring Valley’s Dunbar wins dunk contest, Bishop Gorman’s Amadi takes 3-point title at Beach Ball Classic."