Sunny outlook for first MaxPreps Holiday Classic in Palm Springs

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. – There's only one weather forecast for Palm Springs this week: Sunny. Not even a speck of cloud on the horizon.

Highs are expected to range from 72 to 79 degrees.

The outlook at the new MaxPreps Holiday Classic – formerly known as the Desert Heat Classic – is quite similar.
The 64-team boys basketball tournament with six varsity and two junior varsity divisions is scheduled to start Tuesday at five different sites.

The nation's No. 7 team Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) is the undisputed headliner of the tournament but traditional New York power Lincoln (Brooklyn, N.Y.) and perennial Southern California juggernaut and two-time defending champion Harvard-Westlake (North Hollywood, Calif.) also figure to make some noise at the top of the Invitational bracket.

"It's been a very strong tournament for the last eight years," said tournament co-director Wayne Merino, who led Artesia to California state titles in 1990, 1992 and 1993. "But with the backing of MaxPreps, we expect to attract even more top level teams. The future definitely looks bright."

Getting Mater Dei (8-1) and its legendary coach Gary McKnight on board was a major coup.

McKnight, California's winningest coach, just captured his 900th victory last week at the City of Palms Tournament in Florida. That was the good news.

The bad news was that the Monarchs, the defending state Division I champion, dropped a game to No. 6 Grace Prep 86-80 but bounced back to record impressive wins over Raymond (Bronx, N.Y.) 63-58 and Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) 79-69.

Mater Dei is led by MaxPreps Top 100 seniors Katin Reinhardt (No. 35) and Xavier Johnson (No. 64). Reinhardt, a 6-foot-5 guard, is averaging 19.8 points per game. He's headed to UNLV.

Johnson, a 6-7 wing headed to Colorado, is averaging 16.2 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. Stanley Johnson, a 6-7 sophomore post, is averaging 14.0 points and 5.8 rebounds per game.

Lincoln is undefeated at 6-0 and brings in a high-scoring squad that has tallied at least 70 its last three outings. The team is extremely young and not very deep, but talented, yes.

The best of the bunch is probably 6-4 sophomore guard Isaiah Whitehead, ranked as one of the top 50 10th-graders in the country according to MaxPreps basketball editor Jason Hickman.

Other top players include 6-7 junior Tafari Whittingham a quartet of guards led by 5-9 junior Ethan Telfair.

Harvard-Westlake has superb size and is led by Zena Edosomwan, a 6-8, 240-pound senior forward who is considered one of the Top 100 seniors in the country at No. 86. Utah-bound Josh Hearlihy is a 6-7 senior guard while Derick Newton , a 6-5 sophomore, and David Winfield, a 6-8 senior, give Harvard-Westlake plenty of more size and brawn.

The Wolverines (5-3) started with two straight defeats before winning five of six. Newton is actually leading the team in scoring in the early going at 18.9, while Hearlhy is at 16.3 and Edosowan is 16.0.

Venues include event host Cathedral City High School, Palm Springs High School, Marywood-Palm Valley High School (Rancho Mirage) and College of the Desert.

See full schedule of games on Tuesday in the round-robin format. The tournament format will feature three days of pool play and "Championship Day" with each team competing for placement within their respective division.

Though the top division should continue to see greater competition and more elite players, Merino says the tournament will maintain its versatility and all-encompassing feel.

"We'll still of a good blend of small schools," he said. "It makes for a nice mix and gives all schools and levels a chance to compete."

Though most of the teams travel from nearby Southern California, out-of-state entrants include Bishop Manogue (Reno, Nev.), Galena (Reno, Nev.), Green Valley (Henderson, Nev.), Foothill (Henderson, Nev.), Silverado (Las Vegas) and Skyline (Sammamish, Wash.).

To see top players of each team in the tournament, click here. Look for much more color, features and results here throughout the week.