By Jason Hickman
MaxPreps.com
McDonald's All-American Game Rosters Announced
McDonald's announced the rosters for its annual High School All-American Game last Wednesday, featuring 48 boys and girls for the event being played March 29 at Cox Arena in San Diego, Calif.
Much of the attention will be focused on Indianapolis, Ind., star Greg Oden, considered the premier player in the 2006 senior class. The 7-1, 240-pound center is averaging 21 points and 12 rebounds for MaxPreps' No. 1-ranked team, Lawrence North. Oden will take his game to Ohio State University next year, along with fellow McDonald's All-Americans Mike Conley and Daequan Cook.
On the girl's side, scoring shouldn't be an issue, as eight of the 24 participants average 25 points or more for their high school teams. New York's Epiphanny Prince leads the way at 41 points per game for the East, while Adrian McGowen of Livingston, Texas brings her 39-point scoring average to the table for the West.
Complete Rosters
Boy's East: Earl Clark (Rahway, N.J., Committed to Louisville), Mike Conley (Indianapolis, Ind., Ohio State), Javaris Crittenton (Atlanta, Ga., Georgia Tech), Wayne Ellington (Merion Station, Pa., North Carolina), Gerald Henderson (Merion Station, Pa., Duke), Tywon Lawson (Clinton, Md., North Carolina), Vernon Macklin (Portsmouth, Va., Georgetown), Greg Oden (Indianapolis, Ind., Ohio State), Scottie Reynolds (Herndon, Va., Oklahoma), Lance Thomas (Scotch Plains, N.J., Undecided), Brandan Wright (Brentwood, Tenn., North Carolina), Thaddeus Young (Memphis, Tenn., Georgia Tech).
Boy's West: Darrell Arthur (Dallas, Texas, Undecided), D.J. Augustin (Fresno, Texas, Texas), Chase Budinger (Encinitas, Calif., Arizona), Demond Carter (LaPlace, La., Baylor), Sherron Collins (Chicago, Ill., Kansas), Daequan Cook (Dayton, Ohio, Ohio State), Kevin Durant (Suitland, Md., Texas), Spencer Hawes (Seattle, Wash., Washington), James Keefe (Santa Margarita, Calif., UCLA), Brook Lopez (Fresno, Calif., Stanford), Robin Lopez (Fresno, Calif., Stanford), Jon Scheyer (Northbrook, Ill., Duke).
Girl's East: Jessica Breland (Kelford, N.C., North Carolina), Tina Charles (Jamaica, N.Y., Connecticut), Joy Cheek (Charlotte, N.C., Duke), Amber Harris (Indianapolis, Ind., Purdue), Ashley Houts (Trenton, Ga., Georgia), Kaili McLaren (Washington, D.C., Connecticut), Bridgette Mitchell (Trenton, N.J., Duke), Porsha Phillips (Stone Mountain, Ga., Undecided), Epiphanny Prince (Brooklyn, N.Y., Rutgers), Amber White (Coatesville, Pa., North Carolina State), Danielle Wilson (Bay Shore, N.Y., Baylor), Monica Wright (Woodbridge, Va., Virginia).
Girl's West: Jayne Appel (Pleasant Hill, Calif., Stanford), Jacki Gemelos (Stockton, Calif., USC), Michelle Harrison (Orem, Utah, Stanford), Allison Hightower (Arlington, Texas, Louisiana State), Dela Quese Jernigan (East Chicago, Ind., Purdue), Adrian McGowen (Livingston, Texas, Texas A&M), Morghan Medlock (Hawthorne, Calif., USC), Jordan Murphree (Weatherford, Texas, Texas Tech), Abi Olajuwon (Sherman Oaks, Calif., Oklahoma), Brittainey Raven (Fort Worth, Texas, Texas), Dymond Simon (Avondale, Ariz., Arizona State), Amanda Thompson (Chicago, Ill., Oklahoma).
Love Fueling Lake Oswego
It's only fitting that February, the month best known Valentine's Day, was dominated by Lake Oswego, Ore., junior Kevin Love.
The 6-10 forward, considered by many to be among the top five basketball players nationally in the class of 2007, averaged 34.1 points per game during seven Three-Rivers League games in the month. Love's best performances came against Clackamas Feb. 7, a 46-point output, and two days later in a showdown against highly-ranked Oregon City, a 37-point, 22-rebound effort.
Love, who is expected to make his college choice sometime this spring, has narrowed his choices to Duke, North Carolina, and UCLA.
Sooner State Sophomore Scoring Sensation
Aside from Oklahoma City Hornets point guard Chris Paul, the leading candidate for the NBA's Rookie of the Year Award, Verdigris High School sophomore Rotnei Clarke may be the breakout star on the hardwood in the Sooner State this year.
Clarke isn't just breaking out, he is breaking records. The 6-0 guard leads all public school players in the state in scoring at 36.8 points per game, including seven 40-point performances.
Clarke has led Verdigris, located in Claremore - 30 miles East of Tulsa - to a 20-3 record and the No. 1-ranking in Oklahoma's 3A classification.
The sophomore scoring phenom opened district play with a 44-point performance against Sperry Feb. 18. For the season, Clarke has connected on 103 of 236 three-point attempts (43.6 percent), and is shooting almost 90 percent (89.7) from the foul line. As a freshman, the Verdigris High star averaged 21 points per game.
Gatorade Honors Future Bruin
Lauren Cheney was named the Gatorade National High School Girls Soccer Player of the Year Thursday, after tallying 35 goals and 15 assists last fall for Ben Davis High School in Indianapolis, Ind.
Cheney burst onto the international scene last summer at the annual Nordic Games, contributing eight points in four matches. It was the United States' seventh-straight title at the event, considered the premier Under-21 tournament in the world.
Cheney will take her game to UCLA next year and is currently training with the Under-20 National Team.
The 5-8 forward is also a finalist for the Gatorade Female High School Athlete of the Year honor, which will be presented in July prior to ESPN's Espy Awards.
Jason Hickman: (253) 376-5905 or jrhickman@maxpreps.com
Photo By Louis Lopez: Santa Margarita's James Keefe, 2006 McDonald's High School All-American Game participant.