Cooper Flagg, Maine native and No. 1 recruit, caps off high school basketball career with national title

But Flagg’s defense was arguably the biggest factor for Montverde’s win. He grabbed eight rebounds and blocked a whopping six shots on the day. The blocks were a part of the defensive effort from Montverde to slowdown fellow top recruits and Duke commit Darren Harris and Patrick Ngongba.

The highlight of Saturday’s win came in the closing minutes of the third quarter when Flagg swatted UConn commit Isaiah Abraham’s 3-pointer. As he controlled the ball in midair, Flagg took off in transition and beat everyone else to the rim for a two-handed slam before the horn sounded to give Montverde a 60-46 lead.

The title game was the third straight strong showing from Flagg in the eight-team tournament. He was Montverde’s leading scorer in its first two games of the tournament, which included a 28-point effort on 9 of 14 shooting in its win over Columbus on Friday.

Flagg was named the MVP of the tournament, capping off an impressive high school career. Montverde finished the season undefeated, going 33-0, and went 56-3 in Flagg’s time at the school.

He recently won Naismith Player of the Year and Gatorade National Boys Basketball Player of the Year. It marks the seventh national title in the history of the program, with Flagg joining the likes of Ben Simmons, D’Angelo Russell, Cade Cunningham, Scottie Barnes, and RJ Barrett to lead the school to a national title.

The win also served as a bit of redemption for Flagg, as Montverde was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the tournament last season.

“It was everything,” Flagg said of using last season’s loss as extra motivation. “We thought about it every single day, pictures on our wall, our locker room. We used it as fuel.”

Flagg’s mother, Kelly, told ESPN that winning a national title was the accolade he was seeking the most in his final high school season.

“I couldn’t imagine anything better with my brothers,” Flagg said. “We all move away from home, to build this type of family connection is really special.”

Flagg transferred to Montverde following his freshman season (2021-22) at Nokomis Regional High School in Newport, Maine. Initially a part of the Class of 2025, Flagg reclassified to join the Class of 2024 ahead of the season as he’ll turn 18 in December.

Earlier in the week, Flagg took part in the McDonald’s High School All-American Game. He only scored eight points, but helped the East Team get the win.

Flagg has emerged as one of the top prospects in all of basketball over the last few years. His basketball roots also come from watching the Celtics. In a Globe Magazine profile in Janaury, Flagg’s mom told Chad Finn that she had Cooper and his twin brother, Ace, watch tapes of the 1985-86 Celtics in car rides while traveling between basketball games.

Flagg has also stated that Jayson Tatum is one of the players he looks up to.

“He’s probably ahead of me [at this age],” Tatum told Finn of Flagg, who participated in the Celtics star’s camp last summer. “I wasn’t nearly as athletic when I got into college. It took me a little bit longer.”

As Flagg heads to Tatum’s alma mater, he hopes to do what Tatum wasn’t able to do during his one season in Durham, win a title.

“We’re bringing a lot of energy next year, a lot of excitement,” Flagg said in a recent social media video following Duke’s Elite Eight loss to NC State. “It’s going to be all right. We’ll make it as far. So, just look forward to a lot of success and a lot of energy.”