During his senior year for the Panthers, McDonald led Cypress Springs to a 32–7 record while averaging 19 points en route to being named the 17-5A District Most Valuable Player.

[3][4] ESPN pegged McDonald as the tenth best shooting guard nationally, enough to gain a 96 rating (out of 100) and a place in the ESPNU 100.

[6] On September 12, 2007,[3] McDonald signed with Steve Alford's New Mexico Lobos basketball team, beating out other schools like Oregon, Kansas, Connecticut and Oklahoma.

[1] He posted double-digit scoring eleven times,[1] including a double-double in a win against Grambling St. and a pair of seventeen-point performances against Texas Tech and San Diego State.

His most celebrated junior moment came when New Mexico routed third-ranked BYU in Provo, as McDonald posted 26 points on 5-8 shooting from behind the arc.