Big tests no obstacles for ambitious McDonald

Javon McDonald had some big tests this week at Schaumburg.

Four of them, to be precise, in advanced placement courses for his semester final exams.

"I have to make sure I get some sleep," McDonald said with his typical smile Thursday afternoon.

Fortunately for McDonald, the toughest ones are out of the way as he takes his last two finals today. Then the senior will face two tough weekend tests on the basketball court.

There is tonight's home matchup with Mid-Suburban West rival Hoffman Estates. And at 6:30 p.m. Saturday, McDonald and the Saxons head to the Sears Centre to face Lockport in the 14th annual High School Hoops Showdown.

That's why the 5-foot-11 McDonald, who grew up in Schaumburg, transferred to his hometown school after two years as a varsity starter at Elgin Academy.

"I wasn't able to get seen at such a small school," McDonald said at the Hoops Showdown media gathering. "Coming to Schaumburg, there are more people interested and basketball is bigger.

"It will definitely set me up for college now because the competition level is greater. A lot of people can see I'm capable of playing at a high level."

McDonald has displayed that as one of the Mid-Suburban League's top scorers at 15.9 points a game. He's made 35 3-pointers including 10 in a row in his final two games in the Pontiac Holiday Tournament and regularly defends the opponent's best guard.

And McDonald has also stepped into a leadership role for a team starting sophomores Kyle Bolger and Jimmy Lundquist and junior Christian Spandiary.

"He's such a hardworking, high-character, driven young man," said second-year Schaumburg coach Matt Walsh. "We certainly feel fortunate to have him come into our program.

"He's really been a great role model for our younger players and has shown them how to be successful."

Especially since success didn't come easily to McDonald after he transferred to Schaumburg in the summer before his junior year.

McDonald had a pair of 30-point games as a sophomore at Elgin Academy but was also on teams which won a combined seven games in two seasons.

McDonald said he was regularly subjected to box-and-one defenses. He didn't think people took basketball as seriously as he did.

But McDonald's mother, Wanice, is also serious about her son's academics. So he had to convince his mom a change for better basketball didn't come at the expense of his work in the classroom.

"She saw what I was going through and understood how much I wanted to change," McDonald said.

"She saw how I was capable of playing and realized I could be playing at a bigger school."

Then McDonald got to Schaumburg and wasn't playing much at all at the beginning.

"It was really difficult at first," said McDonald, who scored a total of 5 points in his first four games. "I was kind of down at the beginning of the season. It was tough because I knew I could be playing in front of some of the other guys on the team."

McDonald went out to prove it every day in practice and his playing time gradually increased.

He averaged 13.6 points in Schaumburg's surprising five-game postseason run that ended with a sectional final loss to Waukegan and Jereme Richmond.

"That speaks to Javon's character," Walsh said.

"His perseverance. He has a way about him that kind of seeped into our team."

McDonald hopes to help the Saxons pull off a similar turnaround albeit a little earlier this season.

He sees a team that is working better together heading into the season's home stretch.

And then McDonald will be looking for a new home to play college basketball.

He's maintained his high academic standards with a 4.0 grade-point average and a score of 27 on the ACT.

McDonald was accepted to the University of Chicago two weeks ago. He wants to study economics or physical therapy and also has interest from Washington and Lee University (Va.), Illinois Wesleyan, St. Francis (Joliet) and Roosevelt.

"His best days are ahead of him," Walsh said, "on and off the court."

His days at Schaumburg haven't been too bad on and off the court, either.

"I always knew it was in me," McDonald said of his basketball success. "I'm not surprised at all."

mmaciaszek@dailyherald.com