Tag: Montverde Academy

Paolo Banchero makes trip to deliver Gatorade NPOY award to Duke signee and projected No. 1 pick Cooper Flagg

Cooper Flagg joins prestigious club as he was named Gatorade National Player of the Year, and Duke great Paolo Banchero was there to give him the trophy.

The Brotherhood is genuine. People may not believe it, but Duke’s basketball brotherhood is authentic, and at this point, Duke has infiltrated basketball at all levels.

Former Blue Devil Paolo Banchero is in the midst of his second NBA season, and it’s been an exceptional year. He was named an All-Star for the first time and he’s led his Orlando Magic team into the playoff picture with a 42-29 record.

Before his days as the face of the Magic franchise, he spent a tremendous year in Durham as the face of Duke’s program during Coach K’s last season as head coach of the Blue Devils. While Duke came up short, losing to UNC in the Final Four, Banchero brought Duke to the national semifinals for the first time since 2015.

The mesmerizing, do-it-all power forward averaged 17.2 points and 7.8 rebounds as the focal point of their offensive attack. So it only makes sense that Banchero would pass that torch to the next do-it-all forward with a chance to be a No. 1 NBA draft pick.

Duke signee, the Class of 2024’s top overall recruit, and projected No. 1 draft pick in the 2025 NBA draft Cooper Flagg was named Gatorade Player of the Year on Wednesday, and Banchero was there to deliver the good news and the trophy to him.

It’s a full circle moment for Flagg, who grew up a Duke fan and is now months away from heading to Durham to write his chapter in the same way Banchero did.

Flagg, who was also named the Naismith High School Boys’ Player of the Year, led the No.1-ranked Montverde Academy to a 30-0 regular season record.

Like Banchero, Flagg is a dynamic forward capable of doing anything on the floor. The two differ mainly in the scoring department, where Banchero probably had a little more diversity in his ability to score the ball. Still, Flagg can pass, shoot, and dribble, and he is a better defender than Banchero was at this stage of his career.

Either way, Duke’s 2025 season will center on the newly minted Gatorade National Player of the Year’s ability to dominate on the basketball court. A Final Four trip like Banchero’s would be an incredible accomplishment for his likely one-year college career.

Duke commit Cooper Flagg named 2023-24 Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year

Cooper Flagg, the top prospect in high school, has been named the Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year.

Cooper Flagg, one of the best high school prospects of the decade and leader of the 31-0 Montverde Academy (Fla.) Eagles, was named the 2023-24 Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year on Wednesday.

The Duke commit received the award from former Blue Devil Paolo Banchero, a star on the Orlando Magic.

(Credit: Joe Greer)

“It’s just an incredible honor to be included in this list of players,” Flagg said to Yahoo Sports of the award that has been given to stars like LeBron James, Kobe Bryant and Jayson Tatum. “Just seeing how all the hard work is paying off and it just motivates me to keep getting better and better.”

Flagg is a 6-foot-9, 195-pound do-it-all wing who can score at all three levels, plus play elite defense with the size and speed to guard one through five and strength to block shots. He’s also a good passer, showing off his modern-day skill set at Montverde with averages of 16.1 points, 7.6 rebounds,3.9 assists, 2.7 blocks and 1.6 steals per game his senior season.

“I’ve gotten to know Cooper a little bit at Jayson’s camp,” Banchero said to the Orlando Sentinel. “It’s just been awesome following his journey, and to present him with an award like this, it’s dope for him and also myself.”

Montverde has been the clear-cut No. 1 team in the Super 25 all season long behind Flagg and a bevy of five-star talent around him. The Eagles are undefeated heading into the Chipotle tournament in early April, having taken down several of the next-best teams in the country.

Flagg reclassified from 2025 to 2024 in August, shortly after he dominated at the Nike EYBL Peach Jam, in which he averaged 25.4 points, 13.0 rebounds, 6.9 blocks, and 5.7 assists per game while posting a double-double in all seven games and recording three triple-doubles, all with points, rebounds, and blocks.

As the projected top pick of the 2025 class, he committed to Duke over UConn and Kansas. In an interview with SLAM Magazine, he talked about the decision:

“I think after I got on campus at Duke, I really started to feel it, to be honest,” he says. “That’s something the coaches definitely stressed to me, that once you get to campus, it’s something you have to feel. And [I knew then] I wanted to go to Duke and that’s where I wanted to play college basketball. What went into the decision, I mean, I was just looking for a coaching staff I was really comfortable with, but [also] a coach and staff that was really going to hold me accountable. Being on the visit, I got to see them in practice, and see how they were holding their guys accountable, and really pushing them to be better.

Montverde is prepping for the Chipotle Nationals basketball tournament, formerly known as the GEICO Nationals, but Flagg has one more trophy for his mantle before that begins:

He is the 2023-24 Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year.

(Credit: Joe Greer)

Watch: Duke commit, 5-star forward Cooper Flagg puts a defender on the floor with this crossover

Cooper Flagg is just so smooth.

Cooper Flagg is pretty decent at basketball.

On Friday night, Flagg’s Montverde Academy (from Montverde, Florida and No. 1 in the USA TODAY HSS Super 25) played Long Island Lutheran from Brookville, New York (No. 7 in the USA TODAY rankings)

The game, at Hofstra University was a showcase event for two of the top programs in the nation. And Flagg didn’t disappoint, at least not early on.

The nation’s top player, Flagg is a five-star forward and a Duke basketball commit. In recent weeks, there has been some buzz that he might lose the No. 1 overall recruit status to Ace Bailey, a Rutgers basketball commit.

The argument is that Bailey’s athleticism potentially could give him a higher ceiling than Flagg. Flagg, however, is not disappointing against Long Island Lutheran.

Playing on national television on Friday night, Flagg has eight points, four rebounds and five assists at halftime. Oh, and one opponent he put on the floor.

Check out this move:

 

Ice water in his veins.

 

Prolific Prep battles undefeated Montverde down to the wire for second time this season

Cooper Flagg and Montverde beat Prolific Prep, but for the second time this season, the AJ Dybantsa-led team pushed them to their limit.

With 1:38 remaining in Saturday’s game between national powerhouses Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.) and Montverde Academy (Fla.), Prolific Prep led the undefeated Eagles by two points.

Montverde has yet to be truly tested this season. Running out a lineup of three McDonald’s All-Americans (and arguably five worthy of consideration), the Eagles entered the game 22-0 with an average win margin of about 32 points per game.

With just half a minute left, Prolific Prep was as close to beating them as any team had been since Jan. 14, when the team faced, well, Prolific Prep. The score was tied in that game with about a minute remaining before Montverde grabbed it.

On Saturday, Prolific Prep did not score over the final minute-and-a-half as Montverde clamped its defense, forcing a shot-clock violation and an offensive foul. The Eagles went on an 8-0 catalyzed by a pair of field goals by Robert Wright III, a basket by Cooper Flagg, and then a pair of free throws by Derik Queen and Flagg. The final score was 78-72, a game that was even closer than the final indicated.

Liam McNeeley led with 19 points, while Flagg recorded 17 points, nine rebounds, four assists, and three steals and blocks apiece. AJ Dybantsa led Prolific Prep with 18 points, four rebounds, and four assists, though Montverde forced him into six turnovers.

The finish was similar to that Jan. 14 game, when Prolific Prep led by as many as three points with less than three minutes to play. The Eagles went on a quick 5-0 run behind a pair of free throws and a Curtis Givens 3-pointer and closed it out with a 76-71 win.

Only one other team this season has come close to beating Montverde: No. 3 Paul VI, which kept the deficit within two points entering the final minute of the contest before McNeely hit a 3, Montverde forced a turnover, and Wright added another pair, per MaxPreps’ scoretracker. That made the difference, as the Eagles won by seven.

These games could mean a couple of different things. One is that Montverde is not a team that dominates only until it faces pressure. It’s a mature group that meets the pressure and has stayed strong against all of the top teams it has played so far this season.

The other is that Prolific Prep is darn near close to taking them down. The team knows it must play just about perfect to win. And twice, they’ve toed that line of perfection.

Montverde might not want to see them a third time.

With 15-0 record, Montverde Academy is dominating start of season

Montverde boys basketball, led by Cooper Flagg and Derik Queen, have won its first 15 games of the seasons over tough opponents.

Montverde Academy (Fla.) entered this season with sky-high expectations stemming from its seven rostered players ranked as three-star or better, four of whom have five-star ratings.

Fifteen games into the season, the Eagles are more than meeting them.

On Friday, Montverde’s 93-51 win over Gonzaga (Washington, D.C.) was a blowout over what is arguably another top 5-to-10 team in the nation. The Eagles scored the first 12 points of the game before taking a 24-4 lead into the second quarter. They never trailed and raised their record to 15-0 halfway through the season.

The schedule has been as demanding as any other team in the country.

Several teams Montverde beat are under consideration for the USA TODAY Sports Super 25: Huntsville (Ala.), which is 21-1, suffered its sole loss to the Eagles. Wasatch Academy fell by 35 points. Montverde beat IMG Academy and Columbus, whose rosters contain four- and five-star players such as Darius Acuff Jr., Donnie Freeman, Khani Rooths, and Cameron and Cayden Boozer, and then Link Academy, who has about a half-dozen ranked prospects of its own. AZ Compass Prep managed to keep the score within a dozen before Archbishop Stepinac fell by 40.

(USA TODAY Network)

In the City of Palms Classic, Montverde played against what are likely the second- and third-best teams in the nation in Paul VI and Long Island Lutheran. In the semifinals, Montverde took down Paul VI 69-62 before outplaying LoLu and winning by 14 in the championship.

MaxPreps has 13 games worth of stats for Montverde in its system. According to the outlet, five-star senior Derik Queen leads the team in scoring with 16.8 points per game to go along with 7.2 rebounds in those games. Five-star senior Cooper Flagg is averaging 15.5 points, 7.6 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.3 steals and 2.1 blocks per game.

Asa Newell, a five-star forward, is averaging 12 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks per game, while fellow five-star player Liam McNeeley is posting 13.6 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 2.5 assists per game.

With the Eagles led by that group of highly touted prospects, they have run through their schedule with minimal challenge. Through 15 games, it’s unclear if any team can present a serious threat to this group.

(USA TODAY Network)

Highlights: 5-star sophomore Cooper Flagg goes off for 52 points in EYBL debut

After Cooper Flagg put up 52 points, Sam Vecenie tweeted that the 5-star sophomore will be “bored by high school basketball” by the time he’s a senior.

Cooper Flagg has still yet to finish his sophomore year of high school, but he’s looking more and more like a star-in-the-making each time he steps on the basketball court.

In his EYBL debut last week, Flagg went off for a remarkable 52 points and 12 rebounds. In the highlight reel posted to YouTube by SLAM, Flagg showed a variety of skills on both sides of the ball: He showed some polish in his post moves; he stroked 3s, including one in which he created space and shot with a hand in his face; he was a ball handler at times, both at the top of the key and on the fast break, showing an ability to read the court well. On defense, he had multiple blocks in the paint.

Flagg, listed at 6-foot-8 and 195 pounds, attends Montverde Academy. In about 20 minutes per game as a sophomore, he averaged 9.8 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 1.6 steals and 2.2 blocks, according to MaxPreps. The Eagles consistently have stacked rosters, and Flagg’s role should continue to grow as he gets older and more experienced.

His play has earned high praise from prospect analysts. Sam Vecenie of The Athletic tweeted that Flagg is “one of the more complete prospects” Vecenie has seen for a player of Flagg’s age, and that the sophomore will “be bored by high school basketball” before he graduates.

Based on just this EYBL game alone, it looks like that could be the case. Very few athletes at the high school level will be able to challenge him.

247Sports reports that eight schools have offered the 2025 star, including Duke, Iowa, Michigan and UCLA.

Read more at USA TODAY, where reporter Bryan Kalbrosky wrote a more in-depth piece about Flagg in July with some quotes from recruiting experts — including a line in that Flagg might be the best player in college basketball.

Montverde Academy girls basketball wins back-to-back GEICO Nationals

Montverde Academy girls basketball went on a massive second-half comeback led by Sahnya Jah to win back-to-back GEICO Nationals championships.

For the second year in a row, Montverde Academy has proven itself as the best girls basketball team in the country. On Saturday, the Eagles took down Long Island Lutheran 60-54 to win the GEICO Nationals championship.

With the win, the Eagles finish their season with a record of 26-1, dismantling practically every opponent in their path.

This game was not one of those in which Montverde led wire-to-wire. The Eagles trailed by 16 points in the third quarter, needing a massive comeback to get ahead.

That comeback was led by Sahnya Jah, who had 15 points in the second half alone to finish with a game-high 20. The University of South Carolina commit, ranked No. 40 on ESPN’s top 100 list, was a bully in the post during the comeback, and topped it off by picking up the offensive rebound, putting it back up, and getting fouled as the layup dropped:

Cori Allen contributed 15 points during the game, making three 3-pointers.

The Montverde defense also picked up in the second half, allowing Long Island Lutheran to make just six field goals in the final two quarters, according to SportbookLive. LuHi missed all nine 3-point attempts they took in the second half.

With the victory, Montverde caps off a wildly successful run led by their three players on ESPN’s top 100 list: Jah, Baylor commit Letycia Vasconcelos and Mississippi State commit Mjracle Sheppard. Just because those three are heading off to Division I basketball doesn’t mean the Eagles’ cupboard is empty — led by 2024 four-star Vivian Iwuchukwu, Montverde will aim to be right back at the GEICOs next year.

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Matas Buzelis leads comeback as Sunrise Christian upsets Montverde in GEICOs

Matas Buzelis had a four-point play in the final minute to help Sunrise Christian upset Montverde Academy in the GEICO Nationals. See highlights here.

The No. 1 team in the GEICO Nationals has been taken out by No. 8. Sunrise Christian pulled off a six-point comeback in the final minute of the game to upset Montverde, ranked in the Super 25 as the No. 2 team in the country, and advance to the second round.

Matas Buzelis, a five-star, 6-foot-9 small forward, led Sunrise Christian with 17 points in the 46-45 win. His biggest basket came when the team was about to see their chance slip away. With 53 seconds to play, Buzelis got a four-point play after being fouled on a 3-point show to close the gap from 45-39 to just a two-point game.

Four-star forward Scotty Middleton hit a 3-pointer with about 23 seconds remaining to give Sunrise Christian the lead.

Five-star Montverde center Derik Queen got a final attempt, driving the ball to the rim, but his tightly contested layup was off. Montverde missed the putback at the final second and Sunrise Christian escaped.

See the ending here:

Sunrise Christian had a solid but unspectacular regular season, with a 20-7 record entering the GEICO Nationals. The Buffaloes had lost to Montverde twice already during the season, and were at risk of losing all three when matched against the Eagles in the tournament.

But Buzelis, a five-star, 6-foot-9 small forward, led the way for the Buffaloes, helping them stay in the game long enough that they could clinch a spot in the semifinals.

The Buffaloes will take on Link Academy on Friday. Link Academy, ranked No. 4 in the tournament and No. 7 in the Super 25, beat Sunrise Christian in the regular season — but as was proven on Thursday, that doesn’t mean anything to the Buffaloes.

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Stream high school sports all season on the NFHS Network

Ohio State basketball signee has opportunity for Geico Nationals title

Good luck Scotty! #GoBucks

Typically, high school basketball teams’ seasons end when their run through the state tournament is done, but that isn’t the case for Ohio State signee Scotty Middleton.

The 6-foot, 6-inch, and 180-pound small forward will lead his Sunrise Christian Academy team against Montverde Academy, the top overall seed in the Geico Nationals Tournament.

Sunrise, which is located in Kansas, plays a national schedule, one that has it traveling to multiple different states this season like Maryland, Colorado, Utah, and Texas.

Middleton helped his team 20-7 record and a top ranking in the state. He and his team will look to extend their season this afternoon as tipoff is set for 6:00 p.m. ET Thursday and will be broadcasted on ESPNU.

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WATCH: Texas commit Dillon Mitchell throws down monster putback dunk

The future Longhorn threw up a crazy dunk against IMG!

While Texas’ basketball team is still trying to figure out their identity, the future of the program is making waves on the high school basketball scene.

Five-star commit Dillon Mitchell, who plays at basketball powerhouse Montverde Academy, made a highlight reel play during Montverde’s recent game.

Mitchell led Montverde against IMG, and had what many are considering the play of the game when he grabbed the rebound off his own miss and slammed it in for the putback dunk.

Mitchell is a very versatile player that currently ranks as the No. 27 overall player in the 2022 class according to 247Sports composite rankings. Here is 247Sports’ director of basketball scouting Jerry Meyer’s evaluation of the future Longhorn:

At 6-7 has a long and thin build. Does need to build strength but has electric athleticism. Bouncy and runs like a gazelle. One of the top athletes in the 2022 class. A lefty with a sidewinder shot. His long distance shot is his main weakness, but it is improving and solid in the midrange. Excels at attacking the rim and finishing with authority. Is a high level rebounder who can initiate the break. Handles the ball well and sees the court and has a feel for passing. Can also run the lanes at an elite level. Defense is perhaps his best attribute. Can be a shut down defender. Versatile as well. Tough to find a player he can’t guard.

Mitchell is joined by fellow five-star Arterio Morris and four-star Rowan Brumbaugh as Longhorns pledges. The three of them currently have Texas’ 2022 class ranked No. 13 class in the nation.

Chris Beard and Longhorns fans continue to have reasons to be excited for the future with players with Mitchell’s skillset only helping the future of the program.