Editor's Note: This story originally aired February 24, 2017.
Dunking is something you see a lot of in the NBA, but it's only happened a handful of times in the WNBA. But a sophomore at Regis Jesuit High School can do just that-- and she's becoming a viral phenomenon. Francesca Belibi is just 15 years old, and is the first girl to dunk in a Colorado high school basketball game.
Belibi could dunk before she knew the rules of the game. She showed up to open gym at the start of her freshman year, where she jumped up and grabbed the rim of the hoop. An assistant coach handed her a volleyball and asked her to dunk it. She did.
That's when Carl Mattei, coach of the Regis girl's basketball team, got a text with a video of Belibi showing off her skill. He rushed down to the gym to introduce himself, where he learned Belibi had never played before.
Less than two years later, Belibi is starting on the varsity team. She can dunk during practice no problem, but her first dunk in a game wasn't until last month -- and the video went viral. ESPN made it a "Top 10" play of the day.
“There I was!" Belibi said. "Number one! And it was like, 11 p.m., maybe like three hours after the game had ended.”
Belibi has received more than 200 offers from colleges with Division 1 basketball programs. Colorado Matters host Nathan Heffel spoke with Belibi and Coach Mattei.
