McDonald’s Co-MVPs Deliver Upset Victory for the West
by Brad Best
SAN DIEGO, Calif. – While the East team looked more impressive early on, it was the West team that ran away with the game in a 112- 94 victory on Wednesday night in San Diego at the McDonald’s All American Boys High School Basketball game. The West managed to overcome a 20-point deficit in the first half, closing the gap to just seven points at halftime.
In the first five minutes of the second half, Daequan Cook had a steal, three three-pointers and an assist to lead the West comeback. After that, it was the Kevin Durant and Chase Budinger show. Durant and Budinger went on to becoming co-MVPs. Durant, who is headed to Texas in the fall, had 18 second-half points to finish with 25 points, four assists, and five rebounds. Budinger is a local product out of La Costa Canyon High School, just north of San Diego. He added 11 points, four assists (all to Durant) and three rebounds and will be a fine addition to Lute Olson’s squad at Arizona. He is also an exceptional volleyball player.
Both MVPs exhibited great humility afterward. Durant said, “I was glad I got picked and glad I played well,” referring to his selection and performance. “We played within ourselves and let the game come to us like a regular game.”
Over the last few weeks they had been hearing about the dominance of the East, having won the last four straight games. That proved to be a motivating factor for the West players.
When asked for his reaction, Budinger said, “It was so much fun. It was unbelievable. I got goose bumps. The crowd would erupt every time I scored.”
In fact, the home crowd actually booed whenever Budinger was taken out of the game.
For the first time in its 29-year history, the McDonald’s All American Games were played in San Diego. John Wooden was the Chairman of the event and was on hand to hand out the trophies to the award winners. He received a standing ovation from the sellout crowd whenever his name was mentioned.
If you are counting blocks, Greg Oden had four. They added up quickly, and they looked impressive. But they all came in the first seven minutes of the contest. After that, the West team kept away from Oden in the paint. Oden finished with 10 points, knocking down all four of his free throws and adding some easy put-backs and lay-ups. West head coach Harvey Kitani (Fairfax High School) gave the credit to Robin Lopez for keeping Oden’s scoring in check.
“He did a great job on Oden. He’s a great kid with a great attitude,” said Kitani.
Oden is one of the most highly-touted high school players in the country. His man-sized body and athleticism will be a welcome addition at Ohio State next year. Ohio State nabbed three McDonald’s All Americans this year and is regarded by many to have the top recruiting class.
Gerald Henderson Jr. no doubt made his former NBA father proud as one of the standouts for the East side. He shot 60 percent from the field and finished with 16 points to lead the East in scoring. Henderson will join fellow McDonald’s All American Jon Scheyer at Duke next year. Scheyer had the look and game of the prototypical Duke player. He finished with nine points, four assists, and three rebounds in just 15 minutes of court time.
When asked about the attitude of the West players, Coach Kitani recalled asking his team whether they wanted to play to win or just play. In the second half, they proved that they wanted to win.
