krobinett@journalnet.com

POCATELLO - Before the Idaho State men's basketball team began practice late Thursday evening, Chron Tatum and Deividas Busma spent a few minutes lobbing alley-oop passes to each other off the backboard and then emphatically throwing them down through the basket.

Much like every other person to ever pick up a basketball, they like to dunk.

There is arguably no greater play in all of sports.

Just think of its impact.

It revolutionized the game of basketball. It turned Julius Erving into Doctor J. It made Michael Jordan's "Jumpman" logo a symbol. And no matter how boring or lopsided a game gets, a thunderous slam dunk will always bring a crowd to its feet.

Without it, there would be no difference between men's basketball and women's basketball.

So why, six games into the season, have the Bengals still not dunked a single time?

"I honestly don't know," senior guard Matt Stucki said.

"We haven't?" junior guard Donnie Carson asked.

No, they haven't. Certain players have had their chances - namely forward Demetrius Monroe, guard Amorrow Morgan, Busma and Carson - but they've always gone with the layup rather than the dunk.

O'Brien said as long as those layups are going in, he doesn't care how his players score points. With his team only scoring 41 points last time out, he wants points more than dunks.

Still, like everyone else, he wants to see a dunk.

"I think we oughta try to do it," he said. "It's a statement, especially on our home court. It's something that stirs up the crowd."

So even though no coaches will specifically tell any players to go out of their way to dunk the ball before today's 7 p.m. game against Utah at Holt Arena, they will be encouraging them to do so if given an easy opportunity.

O'Brien said he's seen his big men pass on a handful of wide-open looks already. That's something he'd like to see come to an end.

"Busma oughta be getting a couple," O'Brien said. "He turned down one but made the basket in the second half against Washington State. But any time he's point-blank, I think he oughta do it. He's 7-feet tall and can do it easily. I know Chron will do it. I know Donnie wants to do it. But we haven't had many opportunities."

Against strong defensive teams such as Idaho State's recent opponents, breaking away for slams can, indeed, be difficult. But six games without a dunk, regardless of competition, is one heck of a drought.

Dunks aren't a statistic people keep up with at a national level, but with zero slams Idaho State is at best tied for the least number of dunks in the country this season.

Some are already wondering when the last time a Bengals squad went this long without a dunk.

Playing the Utes at home today, Stucki would like to put an end to that talk. In front of friendly fans, a dunk would "get the crowd and team emotionally involved."

It would also quench a natural thirst that lies inside all basketball players.

"Everybody likes to dunk," Stucki said.