Ninety-one New York, New Jersey and Connecticut girls and boys high school basketball players have been recognized as nominees for the annual McDonald's All-American High School Girls and Boys Basketball Teams. This year marks the 28th anniversary of the boys' McDonald's All-American game and the fourth annual girls' game.

These local players, including Kyle Lardner of Garden City High School, are among 1,000 female and 1,500 male prep basketball standouts in the nation, nominated by the McDonald's All-American Basketball Team Selection Committee, a group of nationally prominent basketball experts. The nominees will be considered for one of 24 slots on each of the final teams.

The McDonald's All-American Games will be played at the University of Notre Dame's Joyce Center in South Bend, IN Wednesday, March 30. The girls' game will tip off at 5:30 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN2 March 31 at 5 p.m. The boys' game begins at 8 p.m. Wednesday, March 30 and will broadcast live on ESPN. Proceeds from both games will benefit Ronald McDonald House charities of South Bend and Fort Wayne, IN. The Ronald McDonald House program has provided a "home away from home" for millions of family members of seriously ill children since its inception in 1974.

The most famous former McDonald's All-Americans are NBA legends Michael Jordan and Magic Johnson. Current NBA All-American alumni include Lebron James, Carmelo Anthony, Mike Bibby and Kevin Garnett. NCAA stars Dee Brown (Illinois), Torin Francis (Notre Dame) and Chris Paul (Wake Forest) and women's NCAA stars Shanna Zolman (Tennessee), Courtney Lavere (Notre Dame) and Seimone Augustus (LSU) have all been part of this highly-regarded game.