Sykes reaches finals in ESPN dunk contest

Former Phoenix star Keifer Sykes made it to the ESPN-televised finals of the 27th Annual State Farm College Slam Dunk Championship, which took place last Thursday at Hinkle Fieldhouse in Indianapolis as part of Final Four weekend. Although he missed on numerous attempts (as did many of his competitors), he did record one “perfect 10s” slam. He advanced out of the opening round of 8 and semifinal round of 4 largely on the basis of judges and viewers impressed by his showmanship and the extreme hops displayed by the shortest man (6-0 on a good day, in shoes and socks) in the competition. Going for the spectacular, Sykes missed all of his attempts in the finals against the winner, Laquavius Cotton of D-II Delta State.