High school basketball: Montverde Academy, Long Island Lutheran headline projected GEICO Nationals field

The GEICO Nationals field is expected to be announced Wednesday. The season-ending tournament designed to crown a high school basketball national champion for independent programs returns to the Suncoast Credit Arena in Fort Myers, Fla., for the third consecutive season from March 30-April 1.

Known previously as the National High School Invitational (2009-13) and Dick's Nationals (2014-17), GEICO Nationals will field an eight-team bracket and crown its 14th champion this season.

This year's field is expected to be comprised of six National Top 10 teams who are returning to compete in the field along with two MaxPreps Top 25 teams who are making their event debuts in No. 3 Long Island Lutheran (Brookville, N.Y.) and No. 8 Paul VI (Chantilly, Va.).

Projected top seed Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) has dominated the postseason tournament in the past, winning six titles (2013, 2014, 2015, 2018, 2021 and 2022) and owning a 26-5 record. The Eagles will be a tough out again this season with a roster filled with high-major talents.

Make sure to check back on Wednesday to see who made the 2023 GEICO Nationals field. Projected field: GEICO Nationals

Projected seed: No. 1
Breakdown: Behind a loaded roster that features six five-star prospects with four additional four-stars, the Eagles are the favorite to capture their third consecutive GEICO Nationals title and seventh overall. The Sunshine State powerhouse is also set to tie Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) for the most appearances in the GEICO Nationals field at 12. Montverde Academy won the NIBC this season with an 11-1 record in conference play and went 6-1 against teams projected to be in the postseason field.

Projected seed: No. 2
Breakdown: In the program's first season in the NIBC, it finished second in the conference with a 10-2 record. Winners of their last 18 consecutive games to close out the regular season, LuHi deserves a favorable seed in their first GEICO Nationals appearance. Long Island Lutheran may be Montverde's biggest obstacle to capturing the title this season as the Crusaders already took Montverde Academy to the wire in their second game of the season.

Projected seed: No. 3
Breakdown: Last season the Crew became the first eight seed to upset the top seed at GEICO Nationals. Their lone loss came against Dream City Christian (Glendale, Ariz.), who are the first team projected to miss the cut this season. Although Prolific Prep does not have the strength of schedule of the NIBC teams expected to earn invitations to the field, it was able to capture the John Wall Holiday Invitational title back in December.

Projected seed: No. 4
Breakdown: Following a trip to the GEICO Nationals title game last season in the program's first year of existence, the Lions are one of the top contenders to capture the coveted postseason title this season. Their lone loss came in blowout fashion against projected top seed Montverde Academy, but this group has the talent to compete with anyone in the tournament field. Although Link Academy is ranked above Prolific Prep in our National Top 10, its seeding in Fort Myers may not reflect that.

Projected seed: No. 5
Breakdown: Finished out the regular season with an unbeaten record in WCAC play before falling in the conference tournament title game against St.John's (Washington, D.C.). In the program's first year being eligible for GEICO Nationals, they are expected to receive an invitation into the field after a strong season that saw them position themselves within the top 10 of the MaxPreps Top 25. Paul VI also captured the VISAA Division I state title last week.

Projected seed: No. 6
Breakdown: The Sunflower State powerhouse doesn't have a strong track record at GEICO Nationals with a 2-3 record in three appearances. Last season, Sunrise Christian Academy became the first top seed to lose in the first round of the postseason tournament after reaching the GEICO Nationals title game in 2021. The Buffaloes finished 7-5 in NIBC play this season and own a 1-6 record against teams projected to be in the field.

Projected seed: No. 7
Breakdown: IMG Academy has emerged as one of the top high school basketball programs over the past few seasons with a 5-3 record at GEICO Nationals in four appearances. The 2019 champions are projected to be a bottom two seed in the field this season but are expected to be a lock for the tournament field. The Ascenders went 8-4 in NIBC play this season but suffered three bad losses along the way to lesser opponents.

Projected seed: No. 8
Breakdown: The final team projected to be in the 2023 GEICO Nationals field, the Dragons held their own in their first season of NIBC action with an 8-4 record in the conference. AZ Compass Prep is the only team in the field to knock off top seed Montvede Academy and it may get another shot at the national powerhouse if the current projections are accurate. AZ Compass Prep is expected to earn its third consecutive bid in the postseason tournament this season with a 1-2 record in event history.

Projected seed: N/A
Breakdown: Although this group handed projected No. 3 seed Prolific Prep its only loss of the season, they are expected to be the top team to be left out of the postseason event.

Projected seed: N/A
Breakdown: It appears the Lakers will have to wait another year to try to become the fourth team to make 10 appearances in GEICO Nationals after going 5-7 in NIBC play.

Projected seed: N/A
Breakdown: Despite suffering 10 losses this season, the Tigers went 7-5 in NIBC play with big wins over projected No. 7 seed IMG Academy and projected No. 8 seed AZ Compass Prep.

Record: 31-4

MaxPreps Top 25: Unranked

Projected Seed: N/A

Breakdown: The NCISAA Class 4A state champions didn't do quite enough to earn an invite to the field despite an impressive season.

2009 – Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.)

2010 – Findlay Prep

2011 – Montrose Christian (Rockville, Md.)

2012 – Findlay Prep

2013 – Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.)

2014 – Montverde Academy

2015 – Montverde Academy

2016 – Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.)

2017 – La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.)

2018 – Montverde Academy

2019 – IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.)

2020 – No event (COVID-19)

2021 – Montverde Academy

2022 – Montverde Academy