Photo Gallery I; Photo Gallery II

All year long, DeMatha senior Victor Oladipo had sparked his team to victory with highlight reel plays, giving his teammates the energy early on in the games. On Thursday night at the 37th Annual Capital Classic at Bender Arena on the campus of American University, Oldapido sparked the Capital squad to their second consecutive victory over the United States team, 117-108.

“It was fun,” said Oladipo, who very nearly blew the roof off of Bender Arena with a monster slam right before halftime. “I just wanted to go out and dunk. I like doing it. I knew the crowd would get into it and our teammates would get into it too.”

That contagious energy was evident from the very beginning of the game as, right out of the gate, the two teams put on a show.

“It’s great, people were cheering as soon as I got off the bus,” said future Maryland Terrapin Pe’Shon Howard, who finished the game with 13 points for the United States All-Stars. “You want it to be a show.”

With the collection of talent on display on the court from the Washington area, as well as some of the country’s top national players, the two teams played fairly evenly throughout the first half, with neither team taking a lead greater than seven points.

“You are playing with better talent,” said future Georgetown Hoya and game MVP Markel Starks. “You are playing with the best guys across the country, especially in this game.”

Right before halftime, Oladipo tipped the momentum in favor of the Capital All-Stars, throwing home a rebound slam of a teammate’s miss. The Capital team, lead by Riverdale Baptist Head Coach Louis Wilson, rode that momentum to the locker rooms at halftime with only a two-point cushion.

But in the second half, the Capital All-Stars began to create some separation behind Starks. “You don’t want to score too many too early and you don’t want score too many too late,” said Starks, who finished with 18 points and led the balanced Capital attack in the second half, using a 13-2 run to create some separation.

Despite the run, the United States team fought back behind the scoring prowess of future Villanova Wildcat Jayvaugn Pinkston, who finished with a game-high 26 points, twice cutting their deficit to four points, before the Capital All-Stars went on another run.

“This was a lot of fun tonight,” said Starks who wanted to make a good impression in his final game as a high schooler. “To me there was more to it. I put my heart and soul into it. It’s overwhelming. I’m still overwhelmed by the experience. I’m definitely fortunate to accept the award.”

While the future Hoya took home top honors, three future Terps starred in a losing effort. Howard said he was looking forward to playing for Coach Gary Williams and in front of the fans that pack the Comcast Center in College Park.

“It’s going to be a difference experience playing in front of 18,000 people, rather than 4,000,” said Howard.

Future Terps Haukur Palsson and Terrell Stoglin chipped in a combined 14 points for the United States team. Future Hoya Nate Lubick also contributed eight points for the United States.