Josh Green leads IMG Academy to first national championship
Sydneysider and rising star Josh Green scored a team-high 19 points against the La Lumiere Lakers, to bring IMG Academy to its first ever GEICO Nationals championship, winning 65-55.
https://twitter.com/espn/status/1114593758148988929
Green, who had a quiet performance in the semi-finals against Montverde --where IMG pulled a comeback 74-73 victory with a 16-point surge-- made a strong return in this game, scoring 13 points in the first half. He ended the game with 19 points, on 7/12 attempts, 3/3 free throws and 2 rebounds (box score).
https://twitter.com/OlgunUluc/status/1114637297360629760
"Its a surreal feeling, I'm at a loss for words," Green said, according to ESPN post-game. "I don't even call my teammates 'teammates' - they're really like family and that's how we approached this season, like a family. It really showed this whole week and showed how bad we wanted it."
Josh Green was named MVP for the championship game, and was also part of the All-Tournament team.
Green's IMG Academy Ascenders teammates also had outstanding performances, including Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (18 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists) and Jaden Springer (12 points, 5 rebounds and 7 assists).
The Ascenders shot 46.7% from deep (7/15), and 51.1% on field goals (24/47) in this championship game.
“We’re the first team to win a national championship, that’s crazy,” Robinson-Earl said, according to USA Today. “With all of the great sports that we have here to be the first to win a national title is special for all of us.”
The IMG Academy Ascenders broke new grounds this season with a record 29-1 run, and also by virtue of having three players in the McDonald's All-American Game: Josh Green, Armando Bacot, and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZGMvNV57qh0
Josh Green is currently ranked at 7th in ESPN's top 100 high school basketball prospects, and has committed to the Arizona Wildcats.
Subscribe to The Pick and Roll
We're all about Aussie hoops. Authentic, independent, objective analysis and commentary around Australian basketball. Read about our men and women in the NBA, WNBA, NCAA, Europe, national teams, NBL, WNBL, NBL1, junior prospects and more.