Students enjoy basketball entertainers' antics

A full-tilt run nearly the length of the gym onto a small trampoline propels "GT" high into the air.

He snatches a basketball a teammate passes and then swoops down from above the rim for a jammin' slam dunk.

Three members of Acrodunk brought their mix of acrobatics, humor and basketball dunking to the Hill-Gustat Middle School gym Monday to entertain about 200 students.

The students earned their seat to the show by selling tubs of cookie dough in a school fundraiser that netted $7,500.

The Acrodunk team - Gregory T. Jerralds, "GT"; Gregory Mueller, "G-Man" and Elijay Price, "Showtime" - sprung into action, showing gravity defying hang time and dunks that confirmed why they made it into the top five on the television show "America's Got Talent."

The team's comedy came through as Jerralds spoke with a funny accent while he instructed band teacher Ariel Maloney how to bounce the ball for an upcoming stunt.

Acrodunk also pulled three teachers from the bleachers for a dance contest.

As each teacher strutted his and her stuff, two students were directed to mirror the teacher's moves and steps.

The students laughed and cheered along with the action and the antics.

Seventh-grader Lindsay Everest was among about 20 students who were rewarded for selling 15 or more tubs of the cookie dough. Before the show, the students met the team, received autographs, had their photograph taken with the team and had front row seats for the show.

"It was really fun," Everest said. "You could tell they really like the sport and they were really serious about everything, but they had a lot of fun. They knew how to mess around and stuff."

Based in Houston, Acrodunk performs about 200 shows a year.

The team's Web site www.acrodunk.com features a quote from "America's Got Talent" judge David Hasselhoff.

"We have seen so many hunks in trunks trying to do dunks and I'm telling you, you are the best," he said.

After the show, Mueller advised the students to do their best in school and not to try any of the Acrodunk stunts at home.

Following is a brief background on the Acrodunk members who came to Hill-Gustat Middle School:

• Mueller turned his passion for sports into a motivational and leadership role to inspire others to be their best selves.

• Gregory was a performer with the San Antonio Spurs and Silver Stars to begin his career and then performed with the Harlem Globetrotters before joining Acrodunk in 2007.

• Price trained in gymnastics at Temple University and is a hip-hop dancer with All Around Entertainment. He performed with the Philadelphia 76'ers dunk team for four seasons and is the mascot for the Washington Mystics.