The 2008 McDonald's All-American Game takes place tonight at the Bradley Center. (Getty)

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March 26, 2008

MILWAUKEE -- Consider this story a sneak preview.

And Milwaukee hoops fans can get another one Wednesday, March 26, when the McDonald’s All-American High School Basketball Games take center stage at the Bradley Center.

The seventh annual girls game will tip off at 6 p.m. and be broadcast live on ESPNU. The boys game will follow at 8:30 and be telecast live on ESPN.

Proceeds of the games will benefit the Ronald McDonald House Charities (RHMC) of Eastern Wisconsin.

Since 1977, McDonald’s has selected the premier prep basketball players in the country for this showcase, and one of this year’s participants has a connection to a member of the Milwaukee Bucks.

Luke Babbitt, a 6-foot-8-inch, 225-pound forward from Galena High School in Reno, Nev., will be one of the 24 participants in the boys game. He will compete for the West team, which is being coached by Tom Diener of Milwaukee Vincent High School and Jim Gosz of Milwaukee King High School, with assistance from Marc Mitchell of Milwaukee Custer High School.

Once Babbitt has finished with his all-star tour, he will continue his career at his hometown University of Nevada, which produced the Bucks’ 2007 second-round draft pick, rookie guard Ramon Sessions.

Some Milwaukee fans already caught a glimpse of what Babbitt can do on the night of March 24.

Leading off the Powerade Jam Fest 3-point Shootout, a prelude to the McDonald’s All-American Games that was won in 2001 by Bucks guard Mo Williams, the southpaw Babbitt racked up 19 points.

That was the top score of the opening round, and it exceeded what many of the NBA’s most accurate long-range sharpshooters have recorded during the All-Star Weekend version of the contest.

Babbitt went on to finish a close second in the competition to Larry Drew II, the son of ex-NBA guard and current Atlanta Hawks assistant coach Larry Drew.

“I’m still a little upset about that,” said Babbitt, obviously a perfectionist. “That was the first official thing I’ve done, the 3-point contest. It’s a lot of fun, but it’s different. You get out there and you don’t really know what you’re doing; you just start shooting.”

Babbitt’s opening-round performance certainly didn’t reflect that. His poise evoked memories of Larry Bird.

“It didn’t feel smooth, I’ll tell you that,” he said. “In the second round, I was hoping I’d get in a pretty good rhythm, and I never really was able to do that. But it was a lot of fun, and I’m thankful that I was able to take part in the 3-point contest.”

Babbitt and his fellow McDonald’s All-Stars would obviously like nothing better than to be participating in NBA All-Star Weekend one day.

“I try to make goals for myself,” he said. “One of my goals was to make this game. A long-term goal is to make the NBA. So I’m going to keep working. I think that’s the goal of everyone here, is to keep playing. There would be nothing better than making basketball your job.

“I try to do everything. I’m really working on my handles right now. I’m working on playing more like a guard. I try to be able to do everything – play inside, outside, shoot, pass, dribble.”

Babbitt was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, and lived in the Buckeye State until he moved to Nevada when he was about 9 years old.

At that time, the University of Nevada-Las Vegas was the only state college team on the national radar. Little did Babbitt or anyone else know that the University of Nevada would be stealing the Runnin’ Rebels’ thunder in less than a decade.

“Ever since we moved to Reno, I’ve been watching the Wolf Pack,” Babbitt said. “They didn’t really get good until about five years ago, and then they started getting really good. They brought in Kirk Snyder (now with the Minnesota Timberwolves), then Nick Fazekas (of the Los Angeles Clippers) and then Ramon Sessions.”

“UNLV’s obviously got great tradition, and they’re still a really good program – they made it to the Sweet 16 last year. But both Nevada programs are doing real well right now.”

Babbitt enjoyed watching Sessions run the point for the Wolf Pack for three seasons, and the two were eventually introduced.

“I always liked watching him,” Babbitt said of Sessions. “I didn’t get a chance to meet him until a year or two ago.

“I had always heard great things about him coming out of high school. He was a really good high school player at Myrtle Beach (S.C.). One of my high school coaches knows his high school coach real well. So we have a little tie there.”

Since few Western Athletic Conference games are televised in Milwaukee, few Bucks fans have had a chance to see Sessions play much. He spent the early portion of his rookie season with the National Basketball Development League’s Tulsa (Okla.) franchise.

After putting up monster numbers with the 66ers, Sessions was recalled by the Bucks, but sustained a broken hand during his first week of practice. He has shown promise in limited duty this far, and Babbitt believes the NBA will become well aware of him one day.

“Ramon’s a really good player and a great guy, and I enjoyed watching him,” he said. “It was a little disappointing to the Nevada fans that he didn’t come back (for his senior year), but I’m sure he’s having a great start to his pro career.

“He’s a real good leader, from what I saw at Nevada. He does a real good job of being a point guard.”

Since the Bucks are on the road, Sessions won’t be around to watch Nevada’s latest prized prospect play live in Milwaukee on Wednesday night.

Babbitt and his fellow All-Stars have been making the rounds the past few days leading up to the game.

“They’ve kept us real busy,” he said. “The first day here, we went to the Ronald McDonald House and spent some time with the kids and families who are staying there. That was a great experience. That’s what this is all about. That’s why we’re having this game.

“Another big part of this experience is just meeting everybody and having a good time with boys teams – the boys and the girls.”

Babbitt, who averaged 31.3 points, 11.5 rebounds and 4 assists per game this season, will likely soon earn his second Nevada Player of the Year selection and third consecutive first-team all-state berth.

He is only the third Nevada prep player to be chosen for the McDonald’s All-American Game, following in the footsteps of former UNLV star Freddy Banks and current University of Louisville center David Padgett.

He realizes the magnitude of his presence in this showcase, and he is humbled by it.

“I’m extremely honored,” he said. “I’ve been working hard for a long time trying to make this game, and I’m very thankful that the voters voted me in.”

Tickets for the McDonald’s All-American Games may be purchased at Ticketmaster.com, the Bradley Center Box Office, Ticketmaster outlets or charged by phone at (414) 276-4545.