03/28/2024
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Pictured, from left, Patty Evers, Megan Kirby and Alan West


CHICAGO – East Bladen Coach Patty Evers and her two longtime assistant coaches, Alan West and Megan Kirby, will coach one of the 2 All-Star teams playing in the McDonald’s All-America Game Tuesday night on ESPN2. Game time is 6:30.

The 21st annual girls all-star game will be played in Wintrust Arena, the home of the WNBA’s Chicago Sky and DePaul University. The McDonald’s Boys All-American game has been played annually since 1977 – 45 years – and will follow the girls game.

It is not the first time that Evers has coached in an all-star game. She coached the North Carolina team to an 80-59 victory in the 2019 Carolinas Classic. Evers is the first North Carolina high school basketball coach to be invited to coach in the McDonald’s All-America game.

Twenty-four of the top 29 prospects on ESPN’s Top 100 women’s prospect list are playing in the McDonald’s game including Apex Friendship’s Indya Nivar, a 5-9 senior who is committed to play at Stanford and is the only player from North Carolina in the game.

Evers just completed her 21st season as head coach at East Bladen. Her 2022 Lady Eagles posted a 26-4 record and reached the Class 2A Eastern Regional Semi-Finals.

In 21 seasons at East Bladen and 5 seasons prior to that at Tar Heel High, Evers’ teams have won 565 games and lost only 134. At East Bladen her Lady Eagles have posted a record of 491-92, won 13 conference championships, reached the regionals 10 times, won 4 Eastern Regional championships and claimed 4 state runners-up finishes.

In November 2021 Evers was named as a recipient of the 2021 John Wooden Legacy Award. She has also won several NCHSAA awards including the Doris Howard Female State Coach of the Year, the Toby Webb Outstanding Coach Award and the Homer Thompson “Eight Who Make a Difference” Award.

A total of 506 girls have played in the McDonald’s All-America game. Among those are 45 WNBA All-Stars including Candace Parker, Breanna Stewart, Paige Bueckers and Sabrina Ionescu.

Coach Evers and her assistants flew to Chicago Friday and have conducted practices and coached their team in a scrimmage. There will be one more practice Monday, before Tuesday’s nationally televised game.

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