Free heart screenings for local youth highlight Hall of Fame Series

LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — Some of college basketball's most prestigious teams, including the reigning national champions Florida, Arizona, BYU and Villanova, took the floor at T-Mobile Arena on Monday night to tip off the 2025-2026 season.

However, this Hall of Fame series is about free heart screenings for local youth, ensuring basketball doesn't skip a beat.

WATCH | Alex Eschelman talks to a local family who lost a loved one due to cardiac arrest

“We started this a year ago, just passing out fliers in parking lots, at any random practice, anywhere I could find a group of people, and it’s now turned into this what you see today here at T-Mobile Arena," Vegas for Athletes Executive Director Troy Roques said.

It's Vegas for Athletes, a non-profit organization's first free heart screening service at an event for local student-athletes ages 12-18, and it's a process that takes no more than a few minutes.

“It was good," local student-athlete Kane said. "You just put it on like a little sticker, and you lay down, no movement, but it was good. It can happen at any moment, so I think it’s good to make sure your body is good.”

According to Vegas for Athletes, sudden cardiac arrest is the number one leading medical cause of death for student-athletes, but most don't get checked for heart conditions.

That's something some local families who have lost loved ones due to cardiac arrest say they're working to change.

“I am the aunt of Ashari Hughes, who unfortunately passed away here in Vegas," Vegas native Nikole Brooks said. She was a flag football player, and we had no idea she was a healthy, young, vibrant girl and collapsed on the field, and so I hope that she’s remembered for being an athlete and her love for the sport…pre-screen your family.”