section_path: High school career
section_name: High school career
paragraph_text: High school career
  
  McClung first started dunking as a sophomore playing varsity basketball at Gate City High School. He grew in profile as an acrobatic dunker through the rest of his high school career. MaxPreps labeled him "one of nation's most exciting players." As a junior, on February 24, 2017, he scored a career-high 64 points in a loss to Dan River High School at the Virginia High School League (VHSL) Region 2A West tournament. It was the best scoring performance in school history and the highest among Virginia public schools since 1984. After the season, he was averaging 29 points, 5.5 assists and three steals per game for the Blue Devils and was tabbed Southwest Virginia Boys' Basketball Player of the Year by the Bristol Herald Courier. In the summer, he committed to play for Rutgers in college.
  
  On December 12, McClung made his senior debut by scoring 47 points, shooting 18-of-23, in a 96–43 win over Lee High School. Among those in attendance was Georgetown head coach Patrick Ewing. On January 11, 2018, after opposing coach James Schooler reportedly told him "you're going to Georgetown to sit", McClung scored 44 points against Fern Creek High School of Louisville, Kentucky, at the Arby's Classic tournament in Bristol, Tennessee. McClung broke the VHSL single-season scoring record previously held by Hall of Famer Allen Iverson during the 2018 VHSL regional playoffs on February 21, surpassing Iverson's record of 948 points in 25 games—five fewer than it took Iverson to amass the previous record. He ended his high school career with Gate City's first state championship, scoring 47 points in an 80–65 title-game win over Staunton 's Robert E. Lee High. The 47 points broke a VHSL all-classes scoring record for a championship game that had been held by former NBA player JJ Redick. McClung finished the season with 1,153 points and 2,801 for his career, also a VHSL all-classes record, and was again named Southwest Virginia Player of the Year by the Herald Courier. He won the slam dunk contest at the Ballislife All-American Game.
  
  McClung first started dunking as a sophomore playing varsity basketball at Gate City High School. He grew in profile as an acrobatic dunker through the rest of his high school career. MaxPreps labeled him "one of nation's most exciting players." As a junior, on February 24, 2017, he scored a career-high 64 points in a loss to Dan River High School at the Virginia High School League (VHSL) Region 2A West tournament. It was the best scoring performance in school history and the highest among Virginia public schools since 1984. After the season, he was averaging 29 points, 5.5 assists and three steals per game for the Blue Devils and was tabbed Southwest Virginia Boys' Basketball Player of the Year by the Bristol Herald Courier. In the summer, he committed to play for Rutgers in college.
  
  On December 12, McClung made his senior debut by scoring 47 points, shooting 18-of-23, in a 96–43 win over Lee High School. Among those in attendance was Georgetown head coach Patrick Ewing. On January 11, 2018, after opposing coach James Schooler reportedly told him "you're going to Georgetown to sit", McClung scored 44 points against Fern Creek High School of Louisville, Kentucky, at the Arby's Classic tournament in Bristol, Tennessee. McClung broke the VHSL single-season scoring record previously held by Hall of Famer Allen Iverson during the 2018 VHSL regional playoffs on February 21, surpassing Iverson's record of 948 points in 25 games—five fewer than it took Iverson to amass the previous record. He ended his high school career with Gate City's first state championship, scoring 47 points in an 80–65 title-game win over Staunton 's Robert E. Lee High. The 47 points broke a VHSL all-classes scoring record for a championship game that had been held by former NBA player JJ Redick. McClung finished the season with 1,153 points and 2,801 for his career, also a VHSL all-classes record, and was again named Southwest Virginia Player of the Year by the Herald Courier. He won the slam dunk contest at the Ballislife All-American Game.