McKae Amundsen Makes His Call

The Idaho State basketball staff knew what they wanted, which transformed into who they wanted and a fairly quick courtship now has 5-foot-10 Clovis North High backcourter McKae Amundsen committed to playing in Pocatello for the Bengals in the 2026-27 next season. So how did this partnership come to be?

"I was offered back in April," Amundsen recalled. "In my very first conversation, I talked for 10 minutes with Head Coach Ryan Looney and he said I was their #1 guy. That made me feel good and I felt like I wanted to be there." Amundsen will actually take his official visit on September 5 so he has yet to see the school but he has certainly nailed down the hoops particulars.

Another compelling reason for Amundsen's decision is because the Bengals sport a pair of senior point guards, both newcomers to the team, graduating after this season.

His mother is an Idaho native but of Boise, three hours and thirty minutes to the west of Pocatello. The schools do reside in different conferences but a state rivalry exists. University of Idaho is in the same Big Sky Conference as Idaho State so theirs is a foremost natural rivalry even though IU is nine hours to the north.

So what does Amundsen do best on the court? He quickly and confidently reeled off "elite level ballhandling and shooting range, my ability to get by opponents (with the ball), I can set up my teammates and I'm an elite level defender."

Last season, Idaho State finished seventh in conference play for three-pointers made per game and last in the conference in three-point percentage so besides getting a new team quarterback, the Bengals are simultaneously landing a topnotch three-point marksman--a critical two-fer. ISU was also a minus five versus opponents in total assists on the season but lost top combo guard Dylan Darling and his team high (by far) 160 assists.

Then there is leadership. "I am definitely a leader and that's important this season because we have a young (Clovis North) team. I lead by example in being first to practices and games but I also know my guys. It's important to get to know teammates and how they will respond to what I say and how I say it."

Plus, add in a 3.9 overall grade point average, 4.4 this last semester, so Looney and Company will be able to rest easy regarding Amundsen's academic commitment and classroom success.

Asking a 'why basketball question' is a tad silly considering his father is a longtime high school hoops coach but Amundsen made it interesting with his reply. "My Dad never forced us to play basketball and I played every sport when I was growing up, until 7th grade. But being around my Dad the coach, I found I loved basketball. His being a coach gave me a lot of advantages. A UC Riverside coach put it best when he told me 'You see the game in another way.'"

Amundsen's best basketball moments occurred this summer. "I hit a game-winner in the Section 7 tournament game and finished with 36 points and five assists. Then I hit a game winner in the Cali Live tournament and finished with 20 points and 10 assists." In both situations, Amundsen's team was behind in the score before he buried his critical shots.

Here are videos of those two moments:

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Section 7 Tournament, June 23, 2025

Section 7 Tournament, June 23, 2025

 

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Cali Live Tournament, June 29, 2025

Cali Live Tournament, June 29, 2025

 

As for a major, Amundsen is looking at business with the direction of becoming a stockbroker.

Regarding initial goals once he arrives in Pocatello, he offered "just win games, win the conference championship, play as efficient as possible and earn an all-freshman honor." In 2024-25, the Bengals finished with a 15-15 record and 10-8 in the Big Sky Conference conference, good for fourth place.

McKae Amundsen Follows His Family Tradition

2026 Clovis North guard McKae Amundsen stands 5-foot-8 but as some guy named Twain once wrote about another species, "it's not the size of dog in the fight but the size of the fight in the dog." Simply put, Amundsen positively effects the games in which he is participating to such a greater degree versus most of his larger backcourt opponents. Plus, being the son of a heralded coach, he has worked to develop a now innate court sense seen so often in sons of coaches -- that being correctly utilizing the right moves on the court at the right moments. 

Plus, in a demonstration of his competitive fire, Amundsen was recently honored as the Top Defender in the Central Cali Prospects Next Up Top 30 Showcase. He was selected to the Top 60 All-Star Game this past weekend in the Pangos All-West Frosh-Soph Camp as well as honored as one of the Most Outstanding Players by scoring 16 points in the game. Longtime southern California talent evaluator Frank Burlison named McKae as one of his Top 20 Performers after witnessing the event. 

The so-called golden apples, haven't fallen far from the tree for McKae and his older brother Connor.

Those Genes

His father, Clovis North High Head Coach Tony Amundsen, spent a year as a redshirt bettering his game after initially not being wanted by the head coach at Chabot College. The next year during his freshman season, he averaged 22.5 points per game, 13th in the state, earning all-state honors. The elder Amundsen then boosted his scoring to 22.9 points per game as a sophomore, earning Northern California Player of the Year honors for his outstanding play with the Gladiators. His scoring total of 1,498 points places him as Chabot's all-time leading scorer. He then moved up to play for Pacific Coach Bob Thomason, earning all-conference honors his senior season. After three years of playing overseas, Amundsen returned home to begin a long-lasting coaching career primarily at the high school level and ultimately became enshrined in the California Community Colleges Men's Basketball Coaches Hall of Fame. Being named the 2012 Division I California State Coach of the Year while helming the Bullard High program is yet another honor he earned.

So why basketball for the youngest Amundsen? "I grew up in a basketball family but our Dad never forced anything. I wanted to be like him." Blessed with the motivation to compete, all the males in the family still have a go at each other every so often on the court. "I played one-on-one with my Dad about six months ago. He doesn't move as well as he used to but he can still shoot the ball." 

Additionally, McKae's mother didn't play long in the basketball ranks but she received an award for "Most Aggressive Player" on her fifth grade team.

Best Hoops Skills

Asked to detail his best basketball skills, McKae offered, "definitely my ballhandling, passing and shooting plus a pretty good basketball IQ. Connor and my Dad have really helped me a lot."

Besides his brother and father being important influences, McKae also cited Kyrie Irving and Steph Curry as NBA talents he enjoys watching. Regarding the latter, "his reads off screens are amazing, he tears apart defenses."

As area scout Paul Hernandez wrote after this summer, "Amundsen is a shifty guard who plays with a relentless motor and is a tough on-ball defender who makes life difficult for opposing guards. Despite the impressive play on offense, it was Amundsen's relentless pressure on opposing ballhandlers that stood out the most ... he was picking up guys full court and displayed great instincts and timing that led to countless steals and transition buckets..."

His favorite hoops moment came last year "in my first start because our point had an ankle sprain and was out. I played nice and hit a couple of threes late to help out." He also added, "beating arch rival Clovis West at home (a 68-66 nail biter) and winning league (the Tri-Rivers League)."

McKae is known for his clutch play. As Dinos Trigonis tweeted late last December, "5-7 2026 PG McKae Amundsen hit a 3 with 20.8 secs remaining to lift Clovis North/CA over Heritage Christian/CA 56-54" in the Classic at Damien tournament.

As for leadership, McKae explained, "I'm definitely a leader by example and by keeping guys on track. But we have lots of leaders on our team in Connor, Jordan (Espinoza), Lucas (Jones) and myself."

Also An Academic Ace

Amundsen also shines in the classroom, sporting a 3.9 grade point average plus a recent Scholar Athlete award. "I try as hard as I can but I wish I could be better." His method of time management considering how much of his time is also spent in the gym is "to get stuff done right away." McKae is looking at majoring in kinesiology or something involving mathematics.

So what is he seeking in a college and basketball program? "I want a coach who keeps his guys accountable, who leads by example and offers a winning culture." McKae eschews any geographical restrictions, simply "looking for the best situation for me."

There is no rivalry or friction playing alongside his brother (who is two steps ahead in eligibility). My sense about him is he will always make the right play and that's how I position myself on the court."

McKae is one of those athletes who sets goals for himself (and his team) prior to each season. "In fact, I'm writing them out right now. I want to finish in the Pangos Top 20, win the Border League, be named a Top Performer in the Valley Children’s tourney, win championships at the Mission Prep and Damien Tournaments, finish with over 20 wins, be ranked in Paul Hernandez' list of Top 5 players, receive an offer by the end of summer and win League, Section and State."

The odds are in McKae's favor considering the entire Amundsen family has a lengthy history of goals becoming accomplishments.