
File photo by Jeremy M. Lange
Andre Dawkins, who normally plays for Duke, will play for Sheraton Imperial this summer.
While the prohibition against younger players must be a disappointment to local prep ballers trying to make their mark, it also ratchets up the competition. This upgrade seemed evident in the first night of games on Thursday.
After newly added women's and wheelchair games to open the festivities, the men took the court at 7 p.m. Team McGladrey, led by Duke’s Mason Plumlee and N.C. State’s C.J. Leslie, rallied to upend CEO Munny (yes, that’s the team’s name) and its star, Wake Forest’s J.T. Terrell, by a 93—74 margin. The frontline of Leslie and Plumlee was unstoppable, with the two big men blocking shots and throwing down monstrous dunks regularly in the second half.
The second game featured two returning UNC players pitted against two highly touted incoming UNC freshman. Dexter Strickland and Leslie McDonald led Sheraton Imperial against team 20/20, which featured James McAdoo, a top-five recruit, and Desmond Hubert, another incoming big man for the Heels. Sheraton Imperial also features returning junior Duke guard Andre Dawkins and superstar Kyrie Irving, who was little-seen in Cameron Indoor Stadium last year, but became the top pick in the NBA draft last month anyway. (Neither Irving nor Dawkins were present for last night’s game.)
The 20/20 roster was also less than advertised last night, as McAdoo was absent, as was former UNC forward and local favorite David Noel, who graduated from Southern Durham High School. Nevertheless, the game proved competitive as Hubert and NCCU center Dave Best battled it out in the post, but the Strickland-McDonald backcourt proved to dynamic for 20/20 to handle as Sheraton Imperial prevailed in a defensive struggle, 71—62.
I'll be reporting back from the McLendon-McDougald gym in the coming weeks.