By CHARLIE PARENT & ADAM ZAGORIA
BROWNSBURG, Ind. — Cooper Flagg will head to Duke with a championship in hand.
The 6-foot-8 senior forward flashed his vast skillset while posting 16 points, 8 rebounds and 6 blocks to leading No. 1 Montverde past No. 2 Paul VI, 79-63, in the Chipotle Nationals championship game on Saturday to complete an undefeated season. LSU commit Curtis Givens added 24 points in the win, making 6-of-9 from deep, while Maryland pledge Derik Queen scored 19 points with 6 rebounds.
It was the seventh national championship and third in four years under coach Kevin Boyle, the Naismith High School Coach of the Year. The win was redemption for a loss in the quarterfinals a year ago.
“I couldn’t imagine anything better with my brothers,” Flagg said postgame. “To build this type of family connection is really special.”
Flagg, the Gatorade National Player of the Year and projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, led the All-Tournament team that also included Givens and Queen as well as Duke commit Darren Harris of PVI and Cam Boozer of Columbus.
Harris scored 16 points in the loss, UConn pledge Isaiah Abraham tallied 12 before fouling out and Duke commit Patrick Ngongba scored 11. Asked if this team was his best ever, Boyle said: “Well, that’s hard to say. I mean, obviously this team’s got to be in that conversation as the best team ever because of the margin of victories they’ve had. Of course, it’s a good conversation. “I think there’s one thing that is clear. The two best teams ever are both from Montverde, Cade Cunningham’s team [in 2021] and this team. I don’t think anybody else has an argument of pros, balance of size and position. You know the whole thing with high level players with finishers with enough reserves so I think that’s you know, if you do it with people who really know the game, I think it’s pretty clear. You had the best and second best team from the same school.” Montverde is the first school to complete a two-program sweeps as the women’s team was victorious over IMG 61-53 earlier Saturday. The women’s team has won three titles in a row. “It’s time to celebrate,” Queen said. “We won.” Follow Charlie on Twitter Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter Follow ZAGSBLOGHoops on Instagram And Like ZAGS on FacebookBlock and the flush š³
— League Ready (@LeagueRDY) April 6, 2024
Cooper Flagg can do it allā¼ļø #ChipotleNationals@Cooper_Flagg | @MVABasketball pic.twitter.com/hShrPvuMHR
