UCLA's TJ Leaf lays waste to Cal 7-footer with spectacular slam
Watch T.J. Leaf play this season, and it’s hard to believe the heralded UCLA freshman had a reputation for being soft early in his high school career.
Leaf showed off his fearlessness and assertiveness early in the Bruins’ matchup with Cal on Thursday night when he caught 7-foot-1 Kingsley Okoroh with a vicious dunk.
Matched up with Cal forward Roger Moute A Bidias at the top of the key, Leaf caught his defender flat-footed, blew by him off the dribble and made a beeline for the rim. When a late-rotating Okoroh attempted to challenge him from underneath the basket, Leaf rose over him and dunked on his head.
The soaring slam was merely the latest example of Leaf’s impact on UCLA’s return to national prominence this season.
The 6-foot-10 native of El Cajon, Calif., is leading the Bruins in scoring at 17.8 points per game and also averaging 8.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists. Leaf is shooting 48.5 percent from behind the arc yet is just as capable of scoring in the low post, off the dribble or on the offensive glass.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
