Weems wins contest, heads to Portsmouth

BY BOB HOLT

Posted on Saturday, April 5, 2008

URL: http://www.wholehogsports.com/adg/221866/

FAYETTEVILLE — Arkansas senior Sonny Weems won the collegiate slam dunk contest Thursday night at St. Mary’s University in San Antonio held in conjunction with this weekend’s Final Four festivities.

Weems, a 6-6 forward from West Memphis who earned All-SEC honors this season, won the contest by hitting four dunks, including one on which he took off running and jumped from the freethrow line and another where he put the ball through his legs while leaping. He also slammed after catching the ball off a high bounce and again passed the ball through his legs on a baseline dunk.

Weems, the first Razorback to compete in and win the dunk contest at the Final Four weekend since Brandon Dean in 2002, was among eight competitors and beat 6-4 Will Bullard of Texas A&M Corpus Christi in the final.

Weems also won dunk contests when he played at West Memphis High School and at Arkansas-Fort Smith.

Weems, who averaged 15 points, 4. 5 rebounds and 2. 6 assists this season for the 23-12 Razorbacks, and Arkansas senior center Darian Townes are among 64 invitees to the 56 th annual Portsmouth (Va. ) Invitational, which will be held next week, Wednesday through Sunday.

It is a showcase event for college seniors and is attended by hundreds of scouts, coaches and executives from NBA teams as well as representatives of international leagues.

The player rosters for this year’s tournament also include Arkansas State guard Adrian Banks and Alabama forward Mykal Riley, who is from Pine Bluff.

The format includes 12 games played over a four-day period.

Other SEC players taking part are Tennessee guards Chris Lofton and JaJuan Smith, Kentucky guards Ramel Bradley and Joe Crawford, Mississippi State forward Charles Rhodes, Ole Miss forward Dwayne Curtis and Auburn forward Quan Prowell.