Ohio junior throws down tomahawk contender for slam of the season

There are dozens of prep basketball games across the country each night that feature dunks. Most are relatively perfunctory, with the players finishing off slams relatively uncomfortably. Some showcase a bit of flare.

Then there are dunks like the one turned in by Cincinnati (Ohio) Turpin High junior Zach McCormick, who completely brought the house down in a game against crosstown rival Cincinnati (Ohio) Anderson during Turpin’s 61-49 victory.

As you can see above, McCormick brought in an alley-oop off the backboard from a teammate and finished off a one-handed, tomahawk jam with absolute authority. He flushed the slam with a strength that bordered on anger and immediately dropped into a scene-stealing pose, even if he was faced away from the camera that caught the action.

Fittingly, McCormick’s slam earned a spot on SportsCenter’s Top 10, finishing in front of any highlights from the annual Crosstown Shootout between Cincinnati and Xavier. The dunk was certainly worth that, just as it will likely be worth a spot on the dunks of the season list come late February and March.

It’s worth noting that McCormick is much more than an athlete animal, too. According to the Cincinnati Enquirer, the 6-foot-1 junior averaged 18.5 points, 5 rebounds and 2.8 steals per game as a sophomore, with those numbers expected to climb in 2012-13.

He has already accumulated more than 10 scholarship offers from mid-major programs and has reportedly begun to receive significant interest from the likes of Michigan, Wisconsin, West Virginia and Virginia, among other programs.

Naturally, his dunk against Anderson will only increase the hype that is now sure to come.

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