The girls McDonald’s All-American game will have a Georgia flavor. Two players are from the state, and two more are signed with Georgia Tech.
Guard Jenna Brown from the Lovett School and forward Olivia Nelson-Ododa from Winder-Barrow High will play for the East team. The two Tech signees, guard Elizabeth Balogun from Chattanooga, Tenn., and forward Elizabeth Dixon from Memphis, Tenn., will play for the West team. The game will be played Wednesday at 5 p.m. at Philips Arena (ESPN2).
“It’s a tremendous honor to be here just because so many great players have passed through here, but it’s definitely kind of a spot along the way of the journey, not the destination,” said Brown, who signed with Stanford.
Nelson-Ododa had sought to become the second girl to win the slam-dunk contest in the event’s history on Monday, but finished second behind Duke signee Zion Williamson. Nelson-Ododa, a Connecticut signee who is 6-foot-4, scored a perfect 100 with her first attempt, a straight-forward dunk.
“It was an amazing feeling,” Nelson-Ododa said. “Dunking has always been an element that I wanted to add to my game, so being able to go out there and just do that, it was incredible.”
Balogun and Dixon are the third and fourth Tech signees to play in the McDonald’s game. A third signee, Jasmine Carson, also of Memphis, was named an honorable mention to the Naismith High School All-America team.
“I’m just really excited to go there, better myself, better my game, hopefully lead them to a Final Four along with my other teammates that are going to be there with me,” Dixon said.
Balogun, who grew up in Nigeria, said her favorite part of the stay in Atlanta was a visit to a Ronald McDonald House, where she and other participants met families staying at the house while children in the family undergo medical treatment in the area.
“The kids, they’re so nice, and their mood, they’re always laughing and smiling,” she said. “That’s the fun thing. They’re so nice. I think I might go back there.”
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