March 17, 2009
ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFAthletics.com) - Jermaine Taylor (Tavares, Fla.) of the UCF men's basketball team has been selected to participate in the Vegas.com Slam Dunk Championship, which will be held on April 2 at the Palace of Auburn Hills in Michigan as part of Final Four weekend. The dunk contest, along with the men's and women's State Farm 3-Point Shooting Championships, will air nationally on ESPN at 9:30 p.m.
The 2008-09 Conference USA Player of the Year, Taylor established several UCF and Conference USA records as a senior. The shooting guard averaged 26.2 points, good for third nationally. He led the Knights in scoring in 29 of their 31 games and recorded nine 30-point performances and one 40-point showing.
In C-USA action, he averaged a league-record 29.1 points. His 466 points in conference play was also good for a C-USA record.
In addition to earning a spot on the All-C-USA First Team, Taylor was selected to the National Association of Basketball Coaches All-District 11 First Team and the United States Basketball Writers Association All-District IV Team.
Other confirmed entrants for the dunk contest include New Mexico's Tony Dandridge and Charlotte's Charlie Coley. In 2008, Sonny Weems of Arkansas claimed the event's title. Other past participants include Tony Allen (Oklahoma State, 2004), J.R. Giddens (New Mexico, 2008), Darvin Ham (Texas Tech, 1996), Dahntay Jones (Duke, 2003), Felipe Lopez (St. John's, 1998) and Ruben Patterson (Cincinnati, 1998).
Taylor concluded his career with 1,979 points, the most scored by a Knight since the program joined the Division I ranks in 1984. He also ranks fourth on the C-USA career scoring register.
For the latest news on the Knights, log on to UCFAthletics.com - the official site for UCF varsity sports. The site, which also contains ticket and Golden Knights Club donor information, is also the home of UCF's new online apparel store. Also visit UCFPhotos.com, the exclusive fan source for UCF action sports pictures.