Returning senior Cade Cunningham ’19 led the U19 Team USA (7-0) with a game-high 21 points, seven rebounds and seven assists over Mali (5-2) on Sunday night in Heraklion, Greece.
Coming into the game undefeated, Team USA had their backs against the wall in the first half as Mali jumped ahead 11-3 at the start of the game. USA would cut into the deficit but still trailed 22-20 at the end of the first period. Mali shot 50.0 percent from the field over Team USA’s 25 percent from the field. Team USA was able to regain their lead but only led Mali by two points at the half, 42-40.
Entering the third quarter, Team USA opened with a 12-0 run that became a 17-2 stretch, and the U.S. led 59-42 with 5:42 left in the third quarter. Mali did not get closer than seven points for the remainder of the game.
Ranked as the No. 2 prospect in the 2020 class by 247 Sports, Cunningham not only led the team in scoring but also contributed to more assists than any other player throughout the tournament. He also helped restore USA’s first-place finish after their loss two years ago to Team Canada who was led by a former MVA alumnus, R.J. Barrett ’18.
Five U.S. players scored in double-digits in the gold medal game, and nine of the USA’s 11 healthy players scored.
Jalen Suggs (Minnehaha Academy/Minneapolis, Minn.) scored 15 points to go with five rebounds; Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (IMG Academy, Fla./Overland Park, Kan.) scored 13 points and seven boards; and Scottie Barnes (University School/West Palm Beach, Fla.) had 11 points and eight rebounds.
Cunningham will now look to continue his training in the offseason and bring a fifth national championship to Montverde Academy in the 2019-2020 season.
Emilio's Sports Blog 