Rebel freshman Jones shows he can fly — PHOTOS
Derrick Jones put on two convincing performances Thursday. The first thing he had to do was talk his way into the dunk contest, and that was the hardest part. Once he did that, he was the favorite to win it.
Less than two weeks after suffering a sprained left ankle, the UNLV freshman jumped over three teammates on his way to winning the dunk contest at the Runnin' Rebel Madness event at the Downtown Las Vegas Events Center, which drew a crowd of around 3,000.
"This is my dream, being in college and playing at a high level," Jones said.
The 6-foot-7-inch Jones is a high riser, sure to be one of the top dunkers in college basketball, but coach Dave Rice wanted to keep him grounded to rest his ankle. Jones lobbied for Rice and team athletic trainer Dave Tomchek to set him loose.
"I felt like I was able to go," Jones said. "I talked to the coaches and the trainer, and they let me go. They didn't want me to come out because they didn't think I was 100 percent. They said it was completely my choice. I wanted them to trust me.
"I got the OK I was able to do it when I got here. I went out and showed them I was good. There's nothing wrong with my ankle. I'm very happy they let me do it."
On Jones' first dunk, he soared over 7-foot Stephen Zimmerman, 6-9 Ben Carter and 6-2 Austin Starr to throw it down with his left hand. A similar dunk by Jones has been widely viewed on YouTube.
"I can pull it out of my back pocket," Jones said. "It's always going to be there when I need it. The crowd wanted to see some dunks. We've got to go out and give them a show."
A celebrity panel of judges — Washington Nationals All-Star outfielder Bryce Harper, former Rebels star Freddie Banks, Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman and UNLV athletic director Tina Kunzer-Murphy — rewarded Jones with scores of 10 across the board in the first round. Jones defeated senior guard Ike Nwamu in the finals.
Harper said he already was aware of Jones' reputation.
"I think everybody across the country knows," Harper said. "Being able to see those YouTube videos and see him live tonight, it's exciting."
Harper, from Las Vegas High and College of Southern Nevada, said he's looking forward to seeing Bishop Gorman High products Zimmerman and Carter and Foothill's Starr play for UNLV.
"Zimm is one of the best in the country," Harper said. "I love the guys who rep the 702, the hometown guys. I love Vegas. I'm Vegas through and through. What a great event."
Starr is a walk-on freshman guard, but he won the six-man 3-point contest by defeating sophomore Jordan Cornish in the finals. Starr made 9 of 12 3s in the first round before eliminating Cornish 4-3.
The event started with music and extravagant team introductions highlighted by smoke, flashing lights, a big video board and players dancing — a show reminiscent of LeBron James' arrival with the Miami Heat.
Assistant coach Max Good even busted a few dance moves.
"We've been working hard," Rice said, "but tonight is about having fun with our great fans."
Goodman gave a speech to greet the crowd.
The Rebels' radio play-by-play announcer, Jon Sandler, showed off his singing talents and led an off-tune version of "Happy Birthday" to Kunzer-Murphy.
And then Starr's shooting and Jones' dunks stole the show before players signed autographs.
"We're going to do some big things this year," Zimmerman announced to the crowd.
Contact reporter Matt Youmans at myoumans@reviewjournal.com or 702-387-2907. Follow him on Twitter: @mattyoumans247
