Amari Bailey, Kiki Rice Represent UCLA Basketball on McDonald's All-American Teams
A handful of future Bruins will don the golden arches before suiting up in blue and gold next fall.
The McDonald's All-American teams were released Tuesday, and UCLA men's basketball sported two incoming recruits in line with UCLA women's basketball's two representatives. Combo guard Amari Bailey and big man Adem Bona will be playing in the boys' game while guard Kiki Rice and wing Gabriela Jaquez will be playing in the girls' game, both of which will take place in Chicago on March 29.
The teams were announced by former All-Americans and basketball stars, with Brooklyn Nets guard James Harden announcing Bailey and Clark's achievement, Chicago Sky forward Candace Parker doing the honors for Bona and Jaquez.
Guard Paris Clark, who decommitted from UCLA women's basketball in November, was also named to the girls team. Guard Dylan Andrews and guard Londynn Jones were both nominated for spots on the teams back on Jan. 12, but neither made the final cut.
Bailey and Bona are also semifinalists to be named SI All-Americans, as is Andrews.
The combined incoming star-studded class projects to be one of the best men's and women's basketball freshman groups ever to enter Westwood together, as the men's incoming class ranks No. 9 on 247Sports and the women's class took the No. 1 spot on ESPN after Rice committed in November.
Bailey is the consensus No. 2 recruit in his class with consensus five-star ratings, leading the high-profile Sierra Canyon (CA) with 29.2 points, 9.1 rebounds and 6.5 assists per game as a junior en route to 2021 California Mr. Basketball honors. Coming in at 6-foot-5 with elite all-around talent and athleticism, Bailey is the highest-rated recruit to join the Bruins since Shabazz Muhammad in 2012.
Bona committed to UCLA in favor of Kentucky back in November, and the Nigerian-born, 6-foot-10 center signed his national letter of intent two weeks later. Bona is a five-star recruit just like Bailey, ranked No. 16 in the 247Sports Composite, and he has earned praise for his high-flying profile and shot-blocking dominance since arriving at Prolific Prep (CA).
Rice is more than just the No. 2 player in the country and No. 1 guard in her class, as she is the highest-rated prospect to commit to the Bruins in at least the last 15 years. The Washington, DC, native scored 26.8 points per game with 10.7 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 2.3 steals per game as a sophomore in 2019-2020, then ranked third in scoring with 18.8 points per game at the Nike Girls EYGL camp this past July.
Jaquez, the younger sister of UCLA men's basketball guard/forward Jaime Jaquez Jr., has been setting the record books ablaze in Ventura County, recently breaking 2,000 career points at Camarillo High School (CA). Leading her team to an undefeated record with her 33 points and 15.8 rebounds per game, the 6-foot wing has been a staple of the crowd at Pauley Pavilion for men's and women's games the past few seasons and is the No. 19 player in the country according to espnW.
The quartet of All-Americans, three of which are in-state products, have all signed on to enroll at UCLA over the summer, a few months after they compete at the McDonald's showcase in the Windy City.
So by the time Bailey, Bona, Rice and Jaquez arrive on campus to join Mick Cronin and Cori Close's respective rosters, they'll have had their fair share of the spotlight – if they haven't already.
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