Putting pen to paper
McBride, Hill among athletes in state to cement college choices.
Issac McBride has not always had the big name in recruiting circles, but the Baptist Prep senior guard seems to be a constant presence when it comes to big games. McBride, 6-1, 170 pounds, has averaged 20 points in state championship games the past three years. He has hit a combined 18 of 33 field goals and 16 of 18 free throws during those games. “I’ll never forget his first championship game in 2016,” said former Baptist Prep coach Brian Ross, who now coaches at Little Rock Central. “He came off the bench as a freshman and scored 13 points in the first half. I think he caught everybody’s attention right there.
“He’s got that trait that [former UCLA coach] John Wooden called competitive greatness. When he gets into a big game, he’s going to be at his best.”
In front of an enthusiastic crowd at the Baptist Prep gymnasium Wednesday, McBride signed a national letter of intent to play for the powerhouse Kansas Jayhawks.
McBride enters his senior season having scored career 1,907 points, a school record. McBride also holds the school record for points in a season (838).
It was not that long ago that the thought of signing with a Kansas program that is one of three in the country to win 2,000 or more games was unfathomable to McBride.
“To be honest, half the schools that offered weren’t on my radar two years ago, and definitely not Kansas,” McBride said. “If you would have told me that two years ago, I would have fallen out of my chair laughing. I believed in myself, but to tell me I would be signing with a big-time program, I wouldn’t have believed it.”
Current Baptist Prep Coach Steve Miller said Kansas is getting a great player and an even better individual.
“He is special,” Miller said. “Whatever team he is on in practice usually wins. Three on three, four on four, five on five, it doesn’t matter. He works so hard. He’s in the gym in the mornings getting extra shots.”
Miller said the night that Kansas Coach Bill Self came to recruit McBride, the Jayhawks coach was late to arrive.
“We got the shooting machine on the floor, and Issac shot 200 three-pointers in about 30 to 45 minutes,” Miller said. “He just works hard.”
“He’s probably the most disciplined player I’ve ever coached just in terms of his work ethic but also being willing to do the right thing and make the right play every single time down the court,” Ross said. “It’s never been about being showy or flashy. He just wants to win.”