The GW men’s basketball program appears to be homing in on another talented recruit. Montrel McDonald, a guard from Fort Worth, Texas, has verbally committed to play for the Colonials in 2005, according to a recent Internet report.
In an Aug. 18 article on elitepreps.com, McDonald’s Team Fort Worth Amateur Athletic Union coach Vonzell Thomas said the six-foot-six-inch slasher has decided to attend college in Foggy Bottom. Before starting college next August, McDonald will spend the 2004-05 school year at Bridgton Academy, a Maine preparatory school.
According to the report, he had signed a letter of intent to play at Texas A&M-Corpus Christi but decided to reclassify and go to prep school, which released him from any ties with the Texas university.
In an interview Tuesday, Colonials head coach Karl Hobbs said he could not confirm McDonald’s commitment to GW but said the University is in the process of recruiting the former high school standout.
McDonald’s game seems to fit the Colonials’ style of play. He has been described as athletic and aggressive, traits that would serve him well in Hobbs’ system, which stresses an up-tempo offense and a defense that thrives on pressing and trapping opponents.
In his senior season at O.D. Wyatt High School, he also put up gaudy numbers, averaging 20 points, 12 rebounds, 4.5 blocks and four assists per game. His skills also go beyond offense and rebounding, as he was named his district’s defensive player of the year.
Archie Meyers, McDonald’s coach at O.D. Wyatt, said there is no doubt in his mind that the 180-pound standout will succeed on the college level.
“He’s definitely a (Division I) player, there’s no two ways about it,” said Meyers, whose daughter Chastity was a member of the GW women’s basketball team from 1995 to 1999.
However, the coach had not talked to McDonald since the spring and said he was unsure about the player’s college choice.
But, Meyers said, GW would be a good fit for the athletic guard.
“If you play up-tempo, then it would it would fit his style well,” Myers said. “He’s got great court awareness, he could just be a dominant player with his athleticism.”
