Prospect Watch: Trent McBride (2019)
It did not take long for Class of 2019 forward Trent McBride of Eminence to establish himself as one of the top Class 1 players in the state.
The versatile 6’6″ McBride entered the Redwings’ lineup as a freshman in 2016 and led them to a Class 1 district championship as he averaged 16 points and nearly 10 rebounds a game.
Despite missing part of his sophomore campaign with a foot injury, McBride delivered more of the same as a sophomore as he averaged 16 points and seven rebounds a game to lead the Redwings to another district championship and a berth in the Class 1 state quarterfinals. Eminence led a talented Advance team in the third quarter, but could not hold off the more experienced Hornets, who went on to finish as the state’s runners-up. McBride had 16 points, six rebounds and four assists in that quarterfinals game.
After a strong summer of playing grassroots basketball with the Top Flight Elite 16U team, McBride is a little bigger and stronger and his goals for his Redwings teams are much loftier for the 2018 season.
“We want to win a state championship; nothing less,” he said. “We didn’t lose anybody from last year’s team and we want to go further than the quarterfinals.”
The Redwings return a host of experience for the upcoming season, but they will again be built around the all-around talents of McBride. The big southpaw has a soft shooting touch with the ability to dominate the action inside, but he is also an excellent and willing passer who can find open teammates out of double teams. He will also step outside and knock down high post jumpers and move it out to past the 3-point line as well.
“I like to catch it in the low post and score, but my outside shot has gotten better as well,” McBride said. “In Class 1, teams don’t have a lot of players that can do both. Being able to attack inside and step out and make jumpers enables me to help my team more.”