April 2, 2008
COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Maryland's James Gist (Silver Spring, Md./Good Counsel) has been selected to participate in the 2008 DiGiorno College All-Star Game in San Antonio, Texas Friday (April 4). The game will take place in the Alamodome at 6:00 p.m. and will be televised by CSTV as part of the Final Four Friday.
A product of the National Association of Basketball Coaches, the DiGiorno College All-Star game is a showcase for college basketball's finest seniors. A total of 22 players will be split into two teams. This year marks the first time the game will be played on the Final Four floor.
Gist was named second team All-ACC in 2007-08 and averaged 15.9 points and 7.9 rebounds per contest. He was also named to the ACC All-Defensive Team as a senior. Gist was fourth in the ACC in rebounds and eighth in scoring. He was second in the conference in blocked shots (2.33 bpg) and finished his career as one of just five players in school history to record at least 1,000 points, 500 rebounds and 200 blocked shots.
Gist will join Mike Green (Butler), Sundiata Gaines (Georgia), Jaycee Carroll (Utah State), Robert McKiver (Houston), Charles Rhodes (Mississippi State), Brian Butch (Wisconsin), Brian Randle (Illinios), Robbie Cowgill (Washington State), Alex Harris (UC-Santa Barbara) and David Padgett (Louisville) on the American team, which will be coached by former South Carolina head coach Dave Odom.
The National team will be coached by Clemson head coach Oliver Purnell and features Jonathan Wallace (Georgetown), Marcelus Kemp (Nevada), Cliff Hammonds (Clemson), DeMarcus Nelson (Duke), Ramel Bradley (Kentucky), Shan Foster (Vanderbilt), Will Daniels (Rhode Island), Aleks Maric (Nebraska), Josh Duncan (Xavier), Joe Jones (Texas A&M), Jason Thompson (Rider).
About the National Association of Basketball Coaches
Located in Kansas City, Mo., the NABC was founded in 1927 by Phog Allen, the legendary basketball coach at the University of Kansas. Allen, a student of James Naismith, the inventor of basketball, organized coaches into this collective group to serve as Guardians of the Game. The NABC currently claims nearly 5,000 members consisting primarily of university and college men's basketball coaches. All members of the NABC are expected to uphold the core values of being a Guardian of the Game by bringing attention to the positive aspects of the sport of basketball and the role coaches play in the academic and athletic lives of today's student-athletes. The four core values of being a Guardian of the Game are advocacy, leadership, service and education.
