Central Valley senior Brynn McGaughy named to McDonald’s All-American game
Central Valley forward Brynn McGaughy drives against Mt. Spokane guard Sloane Gardner on Dec. 13. (COLIN MULVANY/THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW)
Brynn McGaughy has earned plenty of accolades in her high school basketball career, including state champion and state player of the year. She can now add “all-American” to her resume.
On Monday, McGaughy was named to the 2025 McDonald’s All-American Game, to be played at Barclays Center in New York on April 1.
“It hasn’t sunk into me yet,” she said after practice on Monday. “I think today has been an emotional ride, but I would say I’m still in shock. I’m just really, really grateful. It’s an awesome opportunity that I’ve been dreaming of since I was little.”
“It’s really cool,” CV coach Jason Wilson said. “And it’s even cooler because of the type of kid she is. She’s such a really, really good kid. … To be as good as she is, and all the accolades and all the attention and be as humble as she is – that’s the best part about it. It’s hard, especially nowadays, to kind of keep that humility when everything’s about Instagram and ‘me, me, me,’ and that sort of thing.”
The final group of 24 girls and 24 boys to make the rosters were selected by a collection of the game’s top analysts, prep scouts, media and coaches, from hundreds of potential high school player nominations.
McGaughy, a 6-foot-2 senior, is averaging 18.1 points through 16 games with Central Valley (16-0, 5-0). She becomes the ninth player from the state and second from the Greater Spokane League (Angie Bjorklund, University, 2007) to be named a McDonald’s All-American.
“I don’t know if she fully grasps how big of an honor that is,” Wilson said. “Out of the millions of kids that play, and a lot of them are really good players and to be recognized as one of the top 24 in the country? I can’t even imagine.”
McGaughy, who committed to University of Washington in May, led Colfax to the 2023 Class 2B state title as a sophomore, earning 2B state player of the year honors. She battled through a leg injury her junior year, and Colfax still qualified for state but was eliminated before the medal round. She was also named first-team all-state volleyball that year.
“It’s kind of crazy to think where I’ve come from, from a small town like (Colfax),” she said. “But I honestly don’t know if I’d be here if it weren’t for that. Every little detail and step in my life has prepared me and given me this opportunity.”
She transferred to Central Valley for her senior season and has helped the Bears go undefeated through 16 games. McGaughy scored a season-high 29 points on Friday in a 72-58 win over Gonzaga Prep. Entering play Tuesday, CV is rated No. 1 in 3A in the state’s RPI system.
“This is a really passionate, powerful team, and we’ve gotten this far, so why not keep going?” McGaughy said. “We work really hard and we love what we’re doing.”
She is the second player in consecutive years to be named a McDonald’s All-American from the Meta Hoops Idaho AAU program, joining Boise’s Avery Howell, who now is at USC.
“My sophomore year and her junior year, we kind grew together,” McGaughy said. “We got offers together, we got looks together. And when she became an All-American, I was so happy for her – almost like I wanted it for her more than myself. … The exposure with Meta really put us on a platform where we can succeed, and everyone kind of knows about us.”