POSTERIZED: The Masked Dunker strikes again!

The Masked Dunker hit Vegas this weekend.

And while his exploits in the casinos and the strip clubs will forever stay in Vegas, the work he put in at the Euro Summer League won't. And rightfully so.

Ladies and gentlemen, THIS is what a tip-dunk is supposed to look like:



That hangtime is ridiculous. We'll ignore the fact that the guy guarding John Williams (yes, The Masked Dunker's true identity has been revealed) completely ignored his box-out responsibilities, because Williams was still high enough in the air to dunk over the opposing team's center on the way down. The best part about this dunk is the reaction of the guy sitting on the far side of the court, three rows up, next to the stairs with the towel on his head.

One day.

For one day, I would like to know what it feels like to be that athletic. I can't jump that high on a trampoline.
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POSTERIZED: The Masked Dunker in "The Last Leap"

John Williams is the best leaper in the country.

Period.

End of story.

No questions asked.

If you followed B.I.A.H on a frequent basis during the regular season, then you know that we hyped up the 6-foot-4 super-freak from UNC-Asheville, more appropriately known as "The Mask Dunker". Williams became a weekly fixture on SportCenter's "Top Plays", and was a finalist in the NCAA Slam Dunk Contest before getting robbed by crooked judging.

But now, some two months after @JumpinJohnny21 retired the mask, the mild-mannered John Williams returned to perform a feat that neither Blake Griffin or Kobe Bryant could accomplish.

He went and jumped over the roof of a car.



Williams' car-jump was held at the grand opening of the Crons Performance Mentality Store in Franklin, Tennessee.

If you remember correctly, back in 2009 Kobe Bryant fabricated a video to make it look like he was jumping over a speeding Aston Martin. Yes it looked cool, but it wasn't real.

At the NBA All-Star Weekend 2011, Blake Griffin "won" the Slam Dunk Contest by dunking over the hood of a Kia Optima. Yes it's true. Technically he did jump over a car. But we all know that he didn't clear the roof.

But Williams, the man who carried the B.I.A.H POSTERIZED franchise for the entire season, came up large. I don't care if the car was a soft-top convertible. I can guarantee the top of the roof was higher that the hood of Blake Griffin's Kia. So to say that "The Masked Dunker" replicated Blake Griffin's dunk would be a false statement. He went and one-up'd him.

It would be a shame if Williams' talents go to waste. The dude is a 6-foot-4 small forward yet holds the school record for blocks (255) and is ranked fourth in Big South Conference history. There must be a team somewhere in the world who can use Williams' talents (and marketability).

So for all the agents, ad agencies, pro teams, scouts and anybody looking for a "Human Highlight Reel", hire John Williams. He has the full support of the B.I.A.H Staff and we would be more than willing to write a glowing recommendation (Or you can just watch his YouTube videos and see for yourself).

After all, it would be unjust of us not to repay the man who helped make the 2010-2011 season a success for Ballin' is a Habit.


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POSTERIZED: The Masked Dunker got robbed!!!

The NCAA held their dunk contest last night, and it was terrific.

The competitors all brought their A game. They were making their dunks -- on the first try, most of the time -- and the dunks were creative and impressive. The winner was Jacob Tucker, the 5'10" guard from Illinois College that campaigned his way into the contest through youtube:



His dunks were incredible. There is not doubt about that.

But we at BIAH were voting for our boy John Williams. As anyone that reads the site knows, we are huge fans of The Masked Dunker around these parts, and he put on a show of his own last night:



The Masked Dunker got robbed!

Well, actually, no, he didn't. Jacob Tucker was winning this thing regardless of what John Williams did. When you are 5'10" and white and play at a D-III school and campaign your way through viral videos to get into the competition, there is no way that you are going to lose a dunk contest as long as you finish your dunks.

Jacob Tucker was the lock of all locks. John Williams ran into a buzzsaw.

The only thing that I wanted? A second dunk in the finals. The fact that Williams did a windmill and put his arm in the rim is ridiculous. That might have been my favorite dunk of the night.

And not just because of the dunk.

Because of what he did before it.

He put on his mask.

If you listen to Dan Dakich, Brad Nessler, and Jimmy Dykes talk about it, they say that Williams put the mask on to protect his face and nose from the rim. That may be true. But I don't believe it.

That was John Williams becoming ... The Masked Dunker.

Williams' collegiate career is over. And he will be missed, perhaps no where more than the pages of BIAH's POSTERIZED series.
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Q&A with The Masked Dunker; "We like DC. We want to stay until Saturday."

If you follow B.I.A.H. then you know we have a slight-fascination with dunks, slams, rim-rockers, gym-jammers and everything in between.

Over the course of the season, no dunker has captured our awe and amazement like UNC-Asheville's John Williams, also known as @JumpinJohnny21 and "The Masked Dunker", has. The senior forward is the school's all-time leader in blocked shots -- third in Big South History -- despite being only 6-foot-4. He has scored over 1,000 points in his college career and has been featured on SportsCenter's "Top Plays" more than five times.

Oh, and get this: in high school he lettered in basketball, crew, soccer, and golf.

Yeah. John Williams is a well-rounded athlete. (I'm not going to tell you what his handicap is compared to mine.) I'm no theologian, but people say that "God has a plan for everyone", and maybe they were right.

Because UNC-Asheville's first second round game, against No. 1 Pittsburgh, takes place in Washington DC, which just so happens to the hometown of B.I.A.H headquarters.

So naturally, it made sense that we tracked down Williams so we could try to understand how a human being is able to do the type of things he does:

Ballin' is a Habit: Talk to me a bit about the mask. Was it hard to get comfortable with it at first? Did it alter you approach towards dunking at all?

John Williams: At first, yeah, especially with peripherals. It was really hard to adjust to seeing angles and sides, catching the ball when I was trying to post up. But it's something I had to get used to. I had to learn to see where the ball might go. I had to almost foresee when the ball was coming and where it was going.

BIAH: Are you still wearing the mask? During the Arkansas-Little Rock game you weren't wearing it? Are you all healed up? You know, Richard Hamilton still wears a mask and his injury healed up like five years ago.

JW: You know, I dunno man. This Pitt game is going to be a real physical game. I'm ready for it, but I really don't want to get hit there again. But I might just wear it for comfort reasons. Plus, you guys kinda hyped me up with "The Masked Dunker" posts, and I got hit up on twitter asking me if I was going to continue to wear it, so I might just have to wear it for ya'll.

BIAH: When was the first time you could dunk? Have you always been this freakishly athletic?

JW: I worked at it. I went through a whole lot of drills with my dad when I was a kid: Weight suits, ankle weights, jump soles, water running. The first time I dunked was probably in the seventh grade. I caught one off the rim in a middle school game. My dad always used to pick on me and say I wouldn't be able to dunk this year, maybe next year. It was our last home game, and a shot came off the rim perfectly and I caught it and just dunked it all over this kid. It was pretty cool.



BIAH: How do you think you stack up against some of the other great dunkers in the country, like Georgia's Travis Leslie and Arizona's Derrick Williams?

JW: (Travis) Leslie is very impressive. I've gotten to see him a few times when we've gotten to play against Georgia. We got a chance to mess around during lay-up lines and what-not. He showed me a few of his stuff, and I showed him some of my stuff. (Derrick) Williams is tall. Me and Leslie are around the same height, but Williams is tall and athletic. He's probably got our "bunnies" but he's taller, so you don't know what he's capable of, but man, he's athletic."

BIAH: The Big South doesn't get a lot of national publicity, but you yourself have been on ESPN four times this year. Does that mean a lot to you?

JW: That's big man, you know. Especially because our cameras aren't the best in the world, so usually when they do catch me it's usually when we are on somebody else's court. But it's been a blessing to have an opportunity to showcase my skills like that.

BIAH: You guys beat Arkansas-Little Rock in overtime and now have the privilege of facing No. 1 Pittsburgh. Do you feel like playing an extra game will help your chances?

JW: Yeah, we got the butterflies out. Being on a big stage, I feel like we will be better prepared because we've been in that situation before earlier in the week. Plus we've played here before (against Georgetown on 11/27), so we're a little used to the rims, hopefully they bounce our way.

BIAH: You guys have a pretty big front-court. Do you think that will be able to help against Pitt and their big guys like Gary Mcgee?

JW: Man, Pittsburgh's got a big frontcourt, too. They got 6-foot-6, 6-foot-8 and 6-foot-10. Maybe if we are physical with them, we might catch them off guard so hopefully we'll be able to match them.

BIAH: So, are you guys going to become the first No. 16 team to beat a No. 1?

JW: Man, I hope so. To be honest with you, that's what the goal is. We like D.C., we want to stay here until Saturday.

UNC-Asheville plays Pittsburgh at 3:15PM on Thursday. The game will air on TruTV.
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The Masked Dunker has a sidekick

Coastal Carolina's season has taken a serious turn for the worse.

They've now lost three starters, including two in the span of three days last week, which has put into serious question whether or not they will be able to even win the tournament of the conference they dominated for much of the season.

And thanks to UNC-Asheville's Matt Dickey, CCU's strangle hold on the regular season title may now be in jeopardy. With the game tied at 58 and 22 seconds left, Asheville missed a three, giving the ball the the Chanticleers with a chance to win the game by going the length of the floor in 2.4 seconds.

That's when Dickey, who we will now refer to as Kid BuzzerBeater, The Masked Dunker's buzzer beating sidekick, stole the show:



In all seriousness, Coastal Carolina's loss opens the door for Liberty. The Flames have lost two in a row and play their last two games on the road, but if they win out and CCU loses at Charleston Southern this weekend, the Big South title will be shared.

The Chanticleers swept the Flames, so obviously CCU still holds the tiebreaker.

But "the outright conference regular season champion" has such a better ring to it than "co-champion", doesn't it?
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POSTERIZED: The Masked Dunker strikes again

Off the court, he is John Williams, a typical senior at UNC-Asheville getting himself prepared for life after graduation.

On the court, he is The Masked Dunker, a 6'4" forward with springs instead of legs. You should know who he is by now. He made POSTERIZED once already this season when he decided to get all Dominique Wilkins on a fast break. So be forewarned, Big South foes, when you see him coming down the lane ... get out of the way.

Sommy.

Yo, Sommy.

SOMMY OGUKWE. I'm talking to you, brah. Some people never listen. The good stuff starts at the :45 mark:



Until the next time The Masked Dunker strikes...

But was it as good as one of these?:

POSTERIZED - Derrick Williams, Arizona
POSTERIZED - Hollis Thompson, Georgetown
POSTERIZED - Darnell Wilks, Cincinnati
POSTERIZED - Rodney Williams, Minnesota
POSTERIZED - Darius Johnson-Odom, Marquette
POSTERIZED - Darrius Garrett, Richmond
POSTERIZED - Travis Cohn, Jacksonville
POSTERIZED - Ramon Galloway, South Carolina
POSTERIZED - Terrence Jones, Kentucky
POSTERIZED - Justin Tubbs, East Tennessee State
POSTERIZED - John Williams, UNC-Ashville
POSTERIZED - Kevin Smith, Richmond
POSTERIZED - Mitchell Watt, Buffalo
POSTERIZED - Chandler Parsons, Florida
POSTERIZED - Kenny Gabriel, Auburn
POSTERIZED - Paris Horne, St. John's
POSTERIZED - Travis Leslie, Georgia
POSTERIZED - Laurence Bowers, Missouri
POSTERIZED - Drew Gordon, New Mexico
POSTERIZED - Tony Mitchell, Alabama
POSTERIZED - Jeffery Taylor, Vanderbilt
POSTERIZED - LaMarcus Reed, UT-Arlington
POSTERIZED - Marcus Morris, Kansas
POSTERIZED - Jared Cunningham, Oregon State
POSTERIZED - Langston Morris-Walker
POSTERIZED - Chris Wright and Juwan Staten, Dayton
POSTERIZED - D.J Stephens, Memphis
POSTERIZED - Derrick Williams, Arizona
POSTERIZED - Reeves Nelson, UCLA
POSTERIZED - Kendall Marshall and John Henson, UNC
POSTERIZED - Terrence Jones, Kentucky
POSTERIZED - Rodney Williams, Minnesota
POSTERIZED - Joe Jackson, Memphis
POSTERIZED - Shay Shine, High Point
POSTERIZED - Harrison Barnes, North Carolina
POSTERIZED - Kent Bazemore, Old Dominion
POSTERIZED - CJ Fair, Syracuse
POSTERIZED - LeBryan Nash
POSTERIZED - Rodney Williams, Minnesota
POSTERIZED - Travis Leslie, Georgia
POSTERIZED - Terrence Jones, Kentucky
POSTERIZED - Marcus Jordan, Central Florida
POSTERIZED - Lorenzo Brown, NC State
POSTERIZED - Tai Wesley, Utah State
POSTERIZED - Trent Lockett, Arizona State, and Derrick Williams, Arizona
POSTERIZED - Brandon Paul, Illinois
POSTERIZED - Jordan Hamilton, Texas
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POSTERIZED: John Williams is the masked-dunker

You'd be lying if you said you don't laugh just a bit when you see a player wearing one of those goofy "Phantom Of The Opera" protective masks.

Something about those masks just makes the player look like a big stiff.

UNC-Ashville's John Williams is doing his best to change that stereotype.



I don't think anybody from Gardner-Webb will be making fun of his mask ever again.

But was it as good as one of these?:

POSTERIZED - Kevin Smith, Richmond
POSTERIZED - Mitchell Watt, Buffalo
POSTERIZED - Chandler Parsons, Florida
POSTERIZED - Kenny Gabriel, Auburn
POSTERIZED - Paris Horne, St. John's
POSTERIZED - Travis Leslie, Georgia
POSTERIZED - Laurence Bowers, Missouri
POSTERIZED - Drew Gordon, New Mexico
POSTERIZED - Tony Mitchell, Alabama
POSTERIZED - Jeffery Taylor, Vanderbilt
POSTERIZED - LaMarcus Reed, UT-Arlington
POSTERIZED - Marcus Morris, Kansas
POSTERIZED - Jared Cunningham, Oregon State
POSTERIZED - Langston Morris-Walker
POSTERIZED - Chris Wright and Juwan Staten, Dayton
POSTERIZED - D.J Stephens, Memphis
POSTERIZED - Derrick Williams, Arizona
POSTERIZED - Reeves Nelson, UCLA
POSTERIZED - Kendall Marshall and John Henson, UNC
POSTERIZED - Terrence Jones, Kentucky
POSTERIZED - Rodney Williams, Minnesota
POSTERIZED - Joe Jackson, Memphis
POSTERIZED - Shay Shine, High Point
POSTERIZED - Harrison Barnes, North Carolina
POSTERIZED - Kent Bazemore, Old Dominion
POSTERIZED - CJ Fair, Syracuse
POSTERIZED - LeBryan Nash
POSTERIZED - Rodney Williams, Minnesota
POSTERIZED - Travis Leslie, Georgia
POSTERIZED - Terrence Jones, Kentucky
POSTERIZED - Marcus Jordan, Central Florida
POSTERIZED - Lorenzo Brown, NC State
POSTERIZED - Tai Wesley, Utah State
POSTERIZED - Trent Lockett, Arizona State, and Derrick Williams, Arizona
POSTERIZED - Brandon Paul, Illinois
POSTERIZED - Jordan Hamilton, Texas


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