By DORIAN ALERTE
SOMERSET, N.J. — Before tip-off even happened, the crowd at the 2024 Metro Classic could not
wait to see the No. 1 recruit in the 2024 class, Cooper Flagg, take the court.. In Montverde (FL) Academy’s 75-54 win over La Lumiere, the 6-foot-9 Duke commit did not
disappoint, piling up 14 points, including a reverse dunk and a two-handed slam that got the
crowd out of their seats, along with 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.. “It felt good just to be able to come out and perform for the people that are coming to watch,”
said Flagg, the projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. “It was a good atmosphere and it was a lot of fun.”
three-pointer. The Eagles never surrendered the lead. What was an 11-point game at the half,
with Montverde leading 30-19, then blew open as Derik Queen scored 10 of the team’s 26 points
in the paint, giving Montverde a 21-point cushion. “I thought we were a little bit flat in the first half offensively,” head coach Kevin Boyle said in his return to his home state of New Jersey. “I thought we guarded really hard, but we’ve been banged up a little bit. Asa Newell didn’t play because he has turf toe. Liam [McNeely] and Curtis Givens didn’t practice much this week. They both had bruised ankles from spraining their ankles over the weekend, but both of those guys are really tough and you wouldn’t know it.” The uncommitted Queen led all scorers with 18 points and 8 rebounds. Baylor commit Robert Wright provided a huge spark, also scoring 14, and adding 8 assists. “Yeah, pretty much. I’m a mismatch all over the court,” Queen said. Montverde is in the midst of a perfect season, improving to 23-0 in the 2023-24 season. On the
mind of the players: capturing the GEICO National Championship that eluded them last season. “That’s the goal, just getting it done,” Flagg said. “Finishing the year off right. Last year, we still
got that sour taste in our mouths and we always think about it, throughout practice and
everything like that, so we’re just pushing ourselves every day to get better and hopefully, we
achieve that by the end of the year.” Montverde’s next test will come in the final game of the Metro Classic on Saturday, where they will
take on Villanova commit Matthew Hodge and St. Rose, the No. 1 team in New Jersey, at 9 p.m. Follow Dorian on Twitter Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter Follow ZAGSBLOGHoops on Instagram And Like ZAGS on Facebook
wait to see the No. 1 recruit in the 2024 class, Cooper Flagg, take the court.. In Montverde (FL) Academy’s 75-54 win over La Lumiere, the 6-foot-9 Duke commit did not
disappoint, piling up 14 points, including a reverse dunk and a two-handed slam that got the
crowd out of their seats, along with 8 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals.. “It felt good just to be able to come out and perform for the people that are coming to watch,”
said Flagg, the projected No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. “It was a good atmosphere and it was a lot of fun.”
Montverde led from the opening tip, when LSU commit Curtis Givens opened up scoring with aCooper Flagg and Montverde took care of business with a 75-54 win over La Lumiere at the Somos Metro Classic @MVABasketball pic.twitter.com/lm9a2DHPzv
— League Ready (@LeagueRDY) February 2, 2024
three-pointer. The Eagles never surrendered the lead. What was an 11-point game at the half,
with Montverde leading 30-19, then blew open as Derik Queen scored 10 of the team’s 26 points
in the paint, giving Montverde a 21-point cushion. “I thought we were a little bit flat in the first half offensively,” head coach Kevin Boyle said in his return to his home state of New Jersey. “I thought we guarded really hard, but we’ve been banged up a little bit. Asa Newell didn’t play because he has turf toe. Liam [McNeely] and Curtis Givens didn’t practice much this week. They both had bruised ankles from spraining their ankles over the weekend, but both of those guys are really tough and you wouldn’t know it.” The uncommitted Queen led all scorers with 18 points and 8 rebounds. Baylor commit Robert Wright provided a huge spark, also scoring 14, and adding 8 assists. “Yeah, pretty much. I’m a mismatch all over the court,” Queen said. Montverde is in the midst of a perfect season, improving to 23-0 in the 2023-24 season. On the
mind of the players: capturing the GEICO National Championship that eluded them last season. “That’s the goal, just getting it done,” Flagg said. “Finishing the year off right. Last year, we still
got that sour taste in our mouths and we always think about it, throughout practice and
everything like that, so we’re just pushing ourselves every day to get better and hopefully, we
achieve that by the end of the year.” Montverde’s next test will come in the final game of the Metro Classic on Saturday, where they will
take on Villanova commit Matthew Hodge and St. Rose, the No. 1 team in New Jersey, at 9 p.m. Follow Dorian on Twitter Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter Follow ZAGSBLOGHoops on Instagram And Like ZAGS on Facebook
