Tomahawks. Windmills. Alley-oops. Double Pumps. In case you missed them, here are some of the best dunks of January:
Jan. 4 | Miles Bridges, Michigan State (vs. Rutgers)
MSU’s Miles Bridges returned after missing seven games with a left ankle injury, and in his first game back, the freshman forward threw down two alley-oop dunks. He put up six points that night to help the Spartans beat the Scarlet Knights.
Jan. 5 | T.J. Leaf, UCLA (vs. California)
T.J. Leaf finished with 18 points and 11 rebounds as UCLA took down California, 81-71. The Bruins opened a big gap in the first half, leading 44-24, so this Leaf dunk got a little lost. Still, it was one of the best to be seen early in the new year.
Jan. 10 | OG Anunoby (Indiana) vs. Maryland
"Gravity? What's that feel like?" - @IndianaMBB's @OAnunoby, probably https://t.co/sRCLtgrJ0G
— Indiana On BTN (@IndianaOnBTN) January 11, 2017
Sophomore forward OG Anunoby, the Hoosiers' dunking king, slammed this one in during Indiana’s nail-biter with Maryland, which the Terps won, 75-72. Just a little over a week later, though, Anunoby injured his knee against Penn State and was lost for the year. He finished the season averaging 11.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.3 blocks a game.
Jan. 14 | Theo Pinson, North Carolina (vs. Florida State)
In Theo Pinson’s season debut after recovering from a foot injury, he didn't make a single basket, and he didn't fare any better in his next game. In his third game of the year against FSU, though, he racked up his first points of the season … and made quite a show of it.
Jan. 21 | V.J. Beachem, Notre Dame (vs. Syracuse)
V.J. Beachem had an incredible day against Syracuse, leading Notre Dame with 30 points and a slam to add to his highlight reel. But, the dunk wouldn’t have happened without the assist from teammate Matt Farrell, who drove the lane and to get the ball to Beachem.
Jan. 28 | Justin James, Wyoming (vs. Boise State)
#SCtop10 pic.twitter.com/vfg9dbcvGB
— Wyoming Wild Bunch (@wyo_wildbunch) January 29, 2017
Justin James put his name on the list for possible dunk of the year with this one. While he and his teammates fought to take down the Broncos, he tossed in this beaut, part of his eight points on the night.
Jan. 31 | Justin Patton, Creighton (vs. Butler)
JUSTIN PATTON – @BIGEAST tested, Bill Raftery approved. #GoJays #TakeFlight #BIGEASThoops pic.twitter.com/mGNBuzcDwt
— Creighton Basketball (@BluejayMBB) February 1, 2017
In the second half of a top 25 battle, Tyler Clement broke to the right while Butler loaded to the left to send a pass Justin Patton’s way. The freshman center sealed the deal with a stellar dunk that could be remembered well into March.
DII Dunk of the Month: Jan. 2 | Derek Clark, Clark Atlanta (vs. LeMoyne)
Insane.
— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) January 4, 2017
Dunk of the year candidate from DII Clark Atlanta. (via @HBCUGameday) pic.twitter.com/awlNdMSEH1
With 3:05 left, senior guard Derek Harper drove the lane and popped in a nasty dunk over the Magician defense. The ensuing free throw gave him 1,000 points in his career.
