Texas Tech’s Zhaire Smith Pulled Out A 360 Alley-Oop That You Have To See To Believe

Zhaire Smith was not participating in a dunk contest on Thursday night but he might have won one if he was. Texas Tech’s dynamic freshman guard threw down an absolute monster jam during the first round of the 2018 NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament, giving the Red Raiders a huge emotional boost early on against Stephen F. Austin.

Smith got the crowd in Dallas amped up in the first half when he converted a 360 alley-oop dunk in traffic against SFA, making a play that should be incredibly difficult look effortless.

The dunk drew a huge roar, and the broadcast crew pointed out that even some SFA fans were cheering the play. It takes something special to get more than the impartials going at a tournament game, but this one fits the bill.

My goodness. It was so insane that everyone seems to stop for a bit to let Smith drink it in a bit. The Lumberjacks’ bench appeared stunned that he was able to pull that off in a live game. Let’s look at it again another half-dozen or so times.

We’ve seen some big shots on the first day of the tournament, like a genuine buzzer-beater to seal a minor upset and a huge three to stave off another one. We’ve even seen a major name slink away quietly on opening day. But you can argue that no basket in the early-going of a tournament game was as breathtaking as this one.