Takeaways from the 2019 McDonald’s All American Game
What we learned from the Class of 2019’s best.
ATLANTA —The East defeated the West 83-68 in the 2019 McDonald’s All American Girls Basketball Game Wednesday in State Farm Arena. Below are High Post Hoops’ four takeaways from the contest.
Jordan Horston was named the game’s most valuable player
This was not a surprise. From the tip, Horston, who is headed to Tennessee, was everywhere. She scored the east’s first points and finished as the game’s overall leading scorer. That was in addition to her four rebounds, three steals and one assist. She also delivered at least three no-look, rocket passes that teammates didn’t capitalize on – but that didn’t diminish the impact of the passes, if the crowd’s consistent oooh’s were any indication. This could also be a bright spot for Tennessee fans, who, with the recently announced coaching changes and early exit in the NCAA tournament, may be having a rough week.
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Another candidate for game MVP: Zia Cooke (South Carolina). Cooke finished with nine points, seven rebounds, four assists and one steal and is fun to watch. This leads us to the next takeaway.
The impact South Carolina’s future players had on the East’s game
Despite what the final score suggests, the West led by seven to start the second quarter. But the difference with the three South Carolina signees Cooke, Brea Beal and Aliyah Boston on the floor were noticeable. And, the East took the lead and began to pull away from the West. Beal finished with eight rebounds, six points, three blocks and one steal and assist each. Boston added 10 points and nine points. It’ll be interesting to see how they all fit into the Gamecocks roster and develop under Dawn Staley’s coaching.
The West fell flat…
The East led by as many as 21 throughout the game, and there never really was a point where it felt like that would change. There was an almost alley-oop attempt for Fran Belibi in the first quarter, but it didn’t go anywhere. Lots of miscues, tons of missed layups (to be fair, on both sides), and an overall inability to score after the first quarter. This is probably the only time this roster-coaching staff combination will play together, but the dullness was still unfortunate.
… but two players stood out
Anaya Peoples (Notre Dame), who contributed 11 points, eight rebounds, three blocks and three steals felt like the impact player for the West. Rickea Jackson (Mississippi State), who finished with 11 points and seven rebounds, also consistently found a way to score.
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