CELTIC-NATION
You were born on November 15th, 1962 in Inglewood, California.  Please share some of the memories from your childhood, and also some of the events in your life that led you to the basketball court

MARK ACRES
I was a Laker fan growing up – we’ve got the Lakers in town here – and they were always very competitive.  And it always seemed to come down to the Celtics and Lakers for the NBA Championship, so it was kind of interesting that I landed in Boston.  My father was also a coach.  He was a high school coach, and later a college coach.  So that’s pretty much how I got into basketball.

CELTIC-NATION
You played your high school ball at Palos Verdes.  What are some of the memories that stand out after all these years?

MARK ACRES
Oh boy, that’s a lot of water under the bridge [laughs].  I just remember that it was a good childhood, a good school with good kids, and not a whole lot of problems.  It was primarily an academically-minded school.  I just have very good memories of my time there.

CELTIC-NATION
In 1981, you were selected to the McDonald's All-America Team.  What did this mean to you then, and what does it mean to you now?

MARK ACRES
It was an honor.  Being chosen for that puts you in about the top twenty-five players or so in the entire country.  It was very special to be selected, even though a few were left off that probably should have been there.  I still cherish it today – I still have my McDonald’s All-America ring, and some booklets from the games.

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