Zona Zealots
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Arizona Basketball: Jordin Mayes played out of his mind in The Drew League

By Shereen Rayan

Jan 2, 2014; Tucson, AZ, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Gabe York (1), guard T.J. McConnell (4), guard Jordin Mayes (20) and guard Nick Johnson (13) talk on the bench during the second half against the Washington State Cougars at McKale Center. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 2, 2014; Tucson, AZ, USA; Arizona Wildcats guard Gabe York (1), guard T.J. McConnell (4), guard Jordin Mayes (20) and guard Nick Johnson (13) talk on the bench during the second half against the Washington State Cougars at McKale Center. Mandatory Credit: Casey Sapio-USA TODAY Sports /
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You never know who you are going to be to watch play in The Drew League, and each time we go, we get another pleasant surprise. This weekend it was former Arizona Wildcat, Jordin Mayes.

A couple of weeks ago, before Ira Lee stepped foot in Tucson to start training for his Arizona Basketball team, we caught him playing with his future Oregon State opponent Ethan Thompson.

This week, we were watching Baron Davis play and coach his team, and we kept hearing the Drew League play-by-play announcer George Preciado say, “Mayes with the shot,” “Mayes with the steal,” “Mayes with the and-one,” and on and on.

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It dawned on me, could this be Jordin Mayes the Wildcat? The Arizona Basketball player I cheered for each time he scored a layup with ease? I quickly brought up images on google and his highlight video from college, yes, it was him! [queue huge smile across my face]

And it wasn’t just the fact that Mayes was playing again live in front of me, that I could feel that awesome feeling to cheer him on once more. It was that he seemed to have stepped up his game, he was dominating, and I was a very proud Wildcats fan!

By the end of the first quarter, Mayes had hit five of six free-throws and three of four field goals. He continued to get himself to the charity stripe, over and over and over again. What’s more impressive is that Davis’s team had about 15 players total, and could rotate players where Mayes’ team had just a few. Mayes played almost the entire game and still was ready to play more.

What a motor! Mayes earned Player of the Game for his NWA Team (Nationwide All-Stars) who beat New Edition 78-68 evening out their record, 3-3. He scored 25 points making 60% of his shots. Mayes also grabbed three rebounds, dished out three assists and stole the ball twice in 29:37 minutes. To top it all off, he made 75% of his free throws getting to the charity line at least eight times making 12 out of 16 attempts.

Jordin had the same sweet face I remember, and he still donned some facial hair, but he added some nice braids. So it took a couple of the fans and me to confirm my suspicions.

So after his team won by ten points, after New Edition came back from a 22-point deficit to come within six points, we asked Jordin if he could spend some time with him. He obliged, so here is our interview [excuse my giddy-ness]. Mayes talks about what he has been up to, what he loved most about being a Wildcat, and more.

Here are some great highlights from Mayes junior year:

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Thank you, Jordin! We will be keeping up with your career, and wish you the best of success. You seem to be on your way, Bear Down!

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