Clay McKnight Decides to Go to UC Irvine

Clay McKnight of Mater Dei orally committed to play basketball at UC Irvine, Monarch Athletic Director Gary McKnight said Wednesday.

“We’ve been fortunate to see a lot of kids come through our school and earn scholarships,” said Gary McKnight, also Mater Dei’s basketball coach. “But it’s kind of neat to see it happen for your own son. It’s an exciting time for our family.

“(Irvine Coach) Rod Baker did a great job working with us and Clay will get a real chance to play right away.”

McKnight, a 6-foot-2 guard, averaged 14.6 points and shot 54% from the field for Mater Dei last season. The Monarchs finished 33-1 and won the Southern Section Division I-A championship before losing to Los Angeles Crenshaw in the Southern California Regional Division I final.

McKnight, a second-team Times All-County selection, was the South Coast League most valuable player and made 49% (95 of 192) of his three-pointers and 86% of his free throws last season.