The return of the McDonald's All American Game after a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19 was going to be special, the players said. And it was, especially so for Duke-bound
Dariq Whitehead.
The
Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) senior scored 13 points and added seven rebounds and seven assists, leading the East to an emphatic 105-81 victory over the West at Wintrust Arena in Chicago. The 6-foot-6 point guard was named the Most Valuable Player for the game.
Though he's received many awards in his decorated young career, this tops them all.
"This one is definitely special," Whitehead told an ESPN audience in the
final moments of the game. "This one I'm going to remember forever."
Whitehead said a decisive loss to the West in a practice game over the weekend inspired his team more. He said his teammates were after a 20-point-plus victory Tuesday and they got it in a game they never trailed, jumping out to leads of 12-2 and 15-4. They led by double digits most of the night.
Dariq Whitehead was the 2022 McDonald's All American MVP.
Photo courtesy of Lenny Richier/McDonald
He got a lot of help with six East players scoring in double figures, led by Villanova-bound
Cam Whitmore of
Archbishop Spalding (Severn, Md.) who had 19 points, eight rebounds and five assists and
Kentucky-signee
Chris Livingston of
Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) with 13 points, six rebounds and five assists.
Houston-bound
Jarace Walker of
IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) added 11 points and high-flying
Dillon Mitchell of Montverde Academy contributed three spectacular dunks among his nine points. The nation's top recruit
Dereck Lively II of
Westtown (West Chester, Pa.) had 10 points and three blocks and
Arterio Morris, of
Kimball (Dallas) contributed 12 points. Morris, a Texas-signee, switched from the West team at the last moment after a couple of injuries to East players. He contributed to the big win.
Another Duke commit
Mark Mitchell of
Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.) led the West with 19 points. Baylor-bound
Keyonte George, also of IMG Academy, contributed 13 points and three 3-pointers, UCLA-signee
Amari Bailey of
Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.) had 10 points, and Oregon-bound
Kel'el Ware of
North Little Rock (Ark.) added eight points and a game-high 10 rebounds for the West.
Their team shot just 34 of 90 from the field (37.8 percent) compared to 59 percent by the East (45-for-76), which prevailed despite making just 6 of 22 free throws.
Dereck Lively II throws one down for the East.
Photo courtesy of Lenny Richier/McDonald
Cam Whitmore finished with 19 points, eight rebounds and five assists.
Photo courtesy of Lenny Richier/McDonald
Gradey Dick, of the West, gathers the ball with his left hand while Brandon Miller (12) looks on.
Photo courtesy of Lenny Richier/McDonald
Cam Whitemore heading upwards for a big dunk.
Photo courtesy of Lenny Richier/McDonald
