Former Weddington High School boys’ basketball standout Ryan Schwieger will add another honor to his high school basketball legacy before the 6-foot-7 guard continues his playing career at Princeton University this fall.
Schwieger is one of 12 players on the North Carolina West All-Star Team that will battle the East All-Star Team July 17 in the Greensboro Coliseum. Schwieger leaves Weddington as the school’s all-time career scoring and rebounding leader and he holds the school record for most points in a single game.
This will be Schwieger’s second appearance in an All-Star game as the former Weddington player also played in the prestigious Carolina’s All-Star Classic recently in Myrtle Beach, S.C. Schwieger scored nine points in a 134-115 North Carolina victory over the South Carolina All-Stars.
Schwieger was the Southern Carolina Conference Player of the Year after averaging 21.4 points and nine rebounds a game for the Warriors. He also averaged three assists and 1.3 steals an outing. Schwieger shot 60 percent from the field in his final high school season and he made 38 of 86 3-point attempts (44 percent).
As a junior Schwieger averaged 17.7 points while shooting 53 percent from the field. Schwieger averaged 12.2 points and 7.1 rebounds a game as a sophomore.
“Numbers wise, best career in school history,” said Weddington basketball coach Gary Ellington. “Those numbers speak for themselves. I said at the sports banquet, he has all those records and he has really been unselfish his entire career. His personality is to get everyone involved and be a good teammate. I think his teammates appreciated that.”
Schwieger is just the second Weddington boys basketball player to participate in the North Carolina East-West All-Star Game. Brandon Watts (2014) was the first Weddington player selected to the East-West All-Star Game.
“Coaches nominate players and ballots go out across the state,” Elllington said. “The coaches around the state then vote. There are not a lot players selected so it is a big deal, a big accomplishment.
“The selection for (Carolina’s All-Star Game) was a lot harder because they only had one team for the whole state of North Carolina. To be selected for that was a big accomplishment as well.”
Schwieger said he is excited to play against the top high school seniors in the state.
“I like competing against the best players in the state and meeting them,” Schwieger said. “It’s going to be a lot of fun. The (Carolina’s All-Star Game) was a lot of fun because there was a lot of scoring. The best part was the practices because we really got after it.”
Schwieger will play Division I basketball this fall at Princeton and he said the combination of a winning basketball program and very high academic standards is the right fit.
“Princeton was one of my favorites and in the end it was between them and Charlotte,” Schwieger said. “Some bigger schools came in at the end, but it would have been tough to turn down Princeton. I like the coaching staff and the players up there. Everyone has made me fell comfortable. It’s the place for me.”
In high school, Schwieger was a versatile inside-out player and that role may continue this coming season at Princeton, which made the NCAA Tournament last season after winning the Ivy League Championship. Schwieger will leave for Princeton in August.
“They said I could play a couple of different positions,” Schwieger said. “The three, and maybe one through four at times. They had a player last year that was the Ivy League Player of the Year and they said I may be playing in some of his spots. I’m excited about it.”
Schwieger, however, won’t be the only former Weddington High athlete in Greensboro next month. Former Warriors soccer standout Michael Davidson will suit up for the West All-Star Team in the East-West Soccer All-Star Game. Davidson also played on the Weddington basketball team this past season.
“Ryan is a great playmaker,” Davidson said. “Ryan is a very good basketball player.”
