Aaron Gordon, shown here during Monday's Powerade Jam Fest, earned MVP honors after tallying 24 points and eight rebounds.
Photo courtesy of McDonalds All-American Game
With so much star power on the roster for this year's McDonald's All-American Game, surely Wednesday night's showcase at the United Center in Chicago would be more compelling than previous editions – right?
Not so much.
There were plenty of dunks and flashy passes but the outcome was decided in the early minutes of the game as the West jumped to an 18-8 lead and kept a relatively safe distance the whole way en route to a 110-99 win over the East.
The teams combined to shoot 7 of 39 from the 3-point stripe (17.9 percent) and coughed up 27 turnovers in a game that featured quick shots and little pressure defense. Much of the announced crowd of 15,818 appeared to filter out after halftime.
Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.) forward
Aaron Gordon, who committed to Arizona on Tuesday, earned MVP honors after tallying 24 points and eight rebounds. Gordon's scoring total was bolstered by eight dunks – many of the highlight variety.
Bobby Portis (12 points),
Andrew Harrison (10),
Jarell Martin (10),
Jabari Parker (10, eight rebounds) and
Nigel Williams-Goss (10, six assists) also finished in double figures for the victorious West side.
As expected, it was No. 1 Class of 2013 prospect
Andrew Wiggins leading the way for the East with 19 points on 6 of 10 shooting from the field (see complete box score
here). Wiggins, a 6-foot-7 wing, will continue to be a magnet for attention in the coming weeks as he is expected to make his highly-anticipated college announcement.
Wednesday night's game marked the 36th edition of the McDonald's All-American Game, easily the most recognizable and prestigious high school basketball showcase. Past participants include Kobe Bryant (1996), Kevin Durant (2006), LeBron James (2003), Magic Johnson (1977) and Michael Jordan (1981).
Next year's McDonald's game will return to the United Center and Chicago.
