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McGlothan caps GCU legacy with slam dunk title
4/4/2024 11:01:00 PM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro
Lopes leaper finished ESPN event with 3rd perfect score to take championship belt
There was only one suitable way for Gabe McGlothan to leave his Grand Canyon home court for the final time – as a winner.
An ESPN audience was treated to a rare last-second dunk contest victory Thursday night when McGlothan put down a perfect-score jam to take the King's Hawaiian College Slam Dunk Championship belt and leave the Havocs fans and Lope Nation with one last legendary memory.
A half-hour before ESPN was rolling on Global Credit Union Arena and the Havocs, McGlothan headed to the GCU Basketball Facility practice courts with freshman manager Logan Demeter to rehearse a dunk suggested by former Lopes teammate Walter Ellis.
But after missing his initial tries in the contest's final round, McGlothan's allotted 60-second clock was winding down, and he needed a perfect score to beat Eastern Kentucky 6-foot-7 flyer John Ukomado's 59 out of 60 (GCU head coach Bryce Drew gave him a 9).
With Demeter standing sideways and under the hoop with the ball on the back of his neck, McGlothan began his final approach from outside of the left side of the 3-point arc with 3.5 seconds remaining. He vaulted from the paint to clear Demeter and grab the ball when it was below his knees before pivoting his body to reverse-dunk while facing the rim with his right hand.
"Everybody loves March with the buzzer-beaters, so why not add it to the slam dunk contest?" said McGlothan, who grabbed the Bible that he has brought to the GCU bench with him during his four-year Lopes playing career and raised it to the Havocs, where a sign read "Slam Canyon, The Final Season, Episode 30."
No. 30 enhanced the "Slam Canyon" moniker that began when McGlothan helped GCU knock off No. 15 Saint Mary's last month for the program's first NCAA Division I tournament win. When McGlothan left Senior Night with a March 2 win over Stephen F. Austin on ESPNU, he did not know he would play before Lope Nation on national television again a month later.
"This was a lot more exciting," said McGlothan, whose cut and bruised arms reflected the night's effort. "That was an emotional connection to Senior Night. This one, I got my emotions out. You guys know I love you. Now let me put that love on display with this show."
His show, part of the State Farm College Slam Dunk and 3-Point Championships, began with ESPN announcer Sean Farnham saying, "It was 2017 when we were last here and the GCU Havocs elevated this event to a level that it had never seen."
McGlothan made sure the encore presentation at GCU kept the standard. Ellis, who sat courtside with most of this season's GCU team, gave McGlothan a dunk list of "back scratch windy, double between the legs, lob or regular between the legs and windy elbow in the rim" for the first round and semifinals.
After standing amid the Havocs for a pre-competition interview with ESPN's Angel Gray, McGlothan executed that opening windmill (the "windy") from the left side for six perfect 10s from the judges – Drew, Suns Ring of Honor member Shawn Marion, 1992 NBA Slam Dunk champion Cedric Ceballos, 2013 College Slam Dunk champion Doug Anderson, ESPN announcer Jay Williams and Suns guard Grayson Allen.
"I've looked up at a lot of dunks in my career, so I've seen a lot of dunks," Drew joked of his dunk judge credentials.
To start the semifinals, McGlothan put his 40-inch vertical jump to use again with a straight-ahead approach before turning sideways and wrapping the ball behind his legs to the opposite hand for a head-in-the-net flush. To celebrate with the Havocs, McGlothan grabbed a giant GCU hat that was made by a fellow GCU graduate's company, Noggin Boss, and flipped it to the student section.
Needing a 51 on the second dunk to advance to the finals, McGlothan tried a short-approach windmill with a finish that hung the inside of his elbow on the rim.
"Why is he so casual, though?" Williams asked.
"Because he can do it," Farnham said as McGlothan executed it for a score of 56 to reach the finals.
McGlothan embraced Thunder, clapped his hands with the crowd and prayed before his final attempt. When Williams saw what it was, he pledged to give an 11 if he pulled it off.
"He was so good," Drew said. "I thought he was clearly the best from beginning to end, and his dunks were all different. I loved his creativity and the power that he ended them all with."
McGlothan incorporated every element that has made him an embodiment of GCU to raise the program. He incorporate his faith, his skills and his embrace of the student body, whether it was embracing the support of the Havocs or using a freshman manager who happened to be in the locker room hallway when McGlothan admittedly was stressing about his dunk routine and wanted to try a new one. He never made it until the buzzer-beating final slam.
"It was just God's timing," Demeter said. "It was super-cool just to be part of that and to help serve with these dudes because that's my job. I'm a waterboy. I'm a manager, man. That's what we do – be there and make life easier for these guys."
Before the event, a fan gave him a friendship bracelet with beads spelling out his nickname, "Young Skywalker." He wore it as he won.
When the crowd cleared, McGlothan was one of the last people in the building, as he often was after games still in his uniform. This time, he was gathering souvenirs, including a purple "10" score placard, from his fitting farewell.
About 15 hours after he left Global Credit Union Arena, McGlothan will play in the National Association of Basketball Coaches' Division I All-Star Game at State Farm Stadium. The 3:30 p.m. game has free admission and will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network.
"I'm just blessed for the opportunity," McGlothan said. "It was a so-be-it moment. That peace and giving it to Him turned out like that. It's why the first thing I grabbed was by Bible. Because this is literally everything to me."
Other event winners:
An ESPN audience was treated to a rare last-second dunk contest victory Thursday night when McGlothan put down a perfect-score jam to take the King's Hawaiian College Slam Dunk Championship belt and leave the Havocs fans and Lope Nation with one last legendary memory.A half-hour before ESPN was rolling on Global Credit Union Arena and the Havocs, McGlothan headed to the GCU Basketball Facility practice courts with freshman manager Logan Demeter to rehearse a dunk suggested by former Lopes teammate Walter Ellis.
But after missing his initial tries in the contest's final round, McGlothan's allotted 60-second clock was winding down, and he needed a perfect score to beat Eastern Kentucky 6-foot-7 flyer John Ukomado's 59 out of 60 (GCU head coach Bryce Drew gave him a 9).
With Demeter standing sideways and under the hoop with the ball on the back of his neck, McGlothan began his final approach from outside of the left side of the 3-point arc with 3.5 seconds remaining. He vaulted from the paint to clear Demeter and grab the ball when it was below his knees before pivoting his body to reverse-dunk while facing the rim with his right hand.
"Everybody loves March with the buzzer-beaters, so why not add it to the slam dunk contest?" said McGlothan, who grabbed the Bible that he has brought to the GCU bench with him during his four-year Lopes playing career and raised it to the Havocs, where a sign read "Slam Canyon, The Final Season, Episode 30."No. 30 enhanced the "Slam Canyon" moniker that began when McGlothan helped GCU knock off No. 15 Saint Mary's last month for the program's first NCAA Division I tournament win. When McGlothan left Senior Night with a March 2 win over Stephen F. Austin on ESPNU, he did not know he would play before Lope Nation on national television again a month later.
"This was a lot more exciting," said McGlothan, whose cut and bruised arms reflected the night's effort. "That was an emotional connection to Senior Night. This one, I got my emotions out. You guys know I love you. Now let me put that love on display with this show."
His show, part of the State Farm College Slam Dunk and 3-Point Championships, began with ESPN announcer Sean Farnham saying, "It was 2017 when we were last here and the GCU Havocs elevated this event to a level that it had never seen."McGlothan made sure the encore presentation at GCU kept the standard. Ellis, who sat courtside with most of this season's GCU team, gave McGlothan a dunk list of "back scratch windy, double between the legs, lob or regular between the legs and windy elbow in the rim" for the first round and semifinals.
After standing amid the Havocs for a pre-competition interview with ESPN's Angel Gray, McGlothan executed that opening windmill (the "windy") from the left side for six perfect 10s from the judges – Drew, Suns Ring of Honor member Shawn Marion, 1992 NBA Slam Dunk champion Cedric Ceballos, 2013 College Slam Dunk champion Doug Anderson, ESPN announcer Jay Williams and Suns guard Grayson Allen.
"I've looked up at a lot of dunks in my career, so I've seen a lot of dunks," Drew joked of his dunk judge credentials.To start the semifinals, McGlothan put his 40-inch vertical jump to use again with a straight-ahead approach before turning sideways and wrapping the ball behind his legs to the opposite hand for a head-in-the-net flush. To celebrate with the Havocs, McGlothan grabbed a giant GCU hat that was made by a fellow GCU graduate's company, Noggin Boss, and flipped it to the student section.
Needing a 51 on the second dunk to advance to the finals, McGlothan tried a short-approach windmill with a finish that hung the inside of his elbow on the rim.
"Why is he so casual, though?" Williams asked.
"Because he can do it," Farnham said as McGlothan executed it for a score of 56 to reach the finals.
McGlothan embraced Thunder, clapped his hands with the crowd and prayed before his final attempt. When Williams saw what it was, he pledged to give an 11 if he pulled it off."He was so good," Drew said. "I thought he was clearly the best from beginning to end, and his dunks were all different. I loved his creativity and the power that he ended them all with."
McGlothan incorporated every element that has made him an embodiment of GCU to raise the program. He incorporate his faith, his skills and his embrace of the student body, whether it was embracing the support of the Havocs or using a freshman manager who happened to be in the locker room hallway when McGlothan admittedly was stressing about his dunk routine and wanted to try a new one. He never made it until the buzzer-beating final slam.
"It was just God's timing," Demeter said. "It was super-cool just to be part of that and to help serve with these dudes because that's my job. I'm a waterboy. I'm a manager, man. That's what we do – be there and make life easier for these guys."
Before the event, a fan gave him a friendship bracelet with beads spelling out his nickname, "Young Skywalker." He wore it as he won.When the crowd cleared, McGlothan was one of the last people in the building, as he often was after games still in his uniform. This time, he was gathering souvenirs, including a purple "10" score placard, from his fitting farewell.
About 15 hours after he left Global Credit Union Arena, McGlothan will play in the National Association of Basketball Coaches' Division I All-Star Game at State Farm Stadium. The 3:30 p.m. game has free admission and will be broadcast live on CBS Sports Network.
"I'm just blessed for the opportunity," McGlothan said. "It was a so-be-it moment. That peace and giving it to Him turned out like that. It's why the first thing I grabbed was by Bible. Because this is literally everything to me."
Other event winners:
- Keisei Tominaga of Nebraska won the Men's 3-point Championship
- Sara Scalia of Indiana won the Women's 3-point Championship
- Tominaga won the Battle of Champions against Scalia.
- Jack Gohlke of Oakland, Unique Drake of St. John's and Marlow Gilmore Jr. of Francis Marion won the Hot Shot Challenge.
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