PORTLAND- The last time Cooper and Ace Flagg played on the floor at the Cross Insurance Arena was during their freshman year at Nokomis in 2022, when the Warriors beat Falmouth in the state championship game. Cooper and his brother returned on Friday night as part of the Maine Event, as their new team and the top prep team in the country Montverde Academy (Florida) rolled to a 93-51 win over Gonzaga College High School out of Washington, DC.
Cooper dazzled the sold out crowd right away. After Derik Queen won the opening tip, Liam McNeeley (Indiana commit) found a wide open Flagg for a thunderous dunk just seconds in for the first hoop of the night. Montverde scored the first 12 points of the game and were never really challenged, leading 24-4 after the opening eight minutes. Cooper had 13 points in the first half, and Ace got the start and also scored all six of his points in the contest in that first half as they led 45-22 at the break. Montverde kept adding to their lead by tallying another 48 points in the second half, leading by as many as 43 to improve to 14-0 on the season.
Cooper Flagg, the #1 ranked recruit for 2024, finished with a game-high 23 points, 10 rebounds, nine blocked shots, five assists, and three steals. Robert Wright added 15 points, Asa Newell had 14 points and eight rebounds, while Queen and McNeeley each contributed 10 points a piece. Christian Gurdak led Gonzaga College High (11-2) with 19 points. Montverde finishes up their Maine trip on Saturday when they take on CATS Academy out of Boston at the Portland Expo at 6 p.m.
Recap/photo/videos by Chris Lessner
