Video: Harrison Hilliard's highlights vs. Williams Field High
See the Mountain Pointe player in actionChristmas tournament time is a bit like going to Las Vegas. What happens in tournaments stays there and does not have any regular season ramifications.
It allows coaches to try new things that probably wouldn't fly in a game that affected power ranking points. And if they do something that misfires they can return to the regular season a few days later knowing they get a free pass on Monday, because what happens in tournaments doesn't matter in the big picture.
It gives coaches plenty of leeway during the two big tournaments in Arizona this weekend, as many of the area's top girls teams take on a large field at the Nike Tournament of Champions and the boys teams try to match up with national competition during Hoophall West.
"We have a tough draw, but it is kind of what we need,"
Hamilton (Chandler) girls coach Trevor Neider said. "We are relying too much on our athleticism at times and not enough on running our offense or not digging in our defense."
Courtney Colleary and Hamilton took on Tennessee power Blackman last season in the Nike TOC, and will face Clovis West of California this year.
File photo by Mark Jones
The Huskies (8-1) are off to a good start in Neider's first year running the program. Hamilton, the top team in Arizona in the MaxPreps National Girls Basketball Computer Rankings presented by the Army National Guard, went 3-1 at the McDonald's Classic in Texas last week and now take a shot at the Nike TOC with a first-round game against Clovis West (Fresno, Calif.).
"They are really disciplined and aggressive," Neider said. "It's going to be good for us, and we can try some things because they're not a team we will see again and if we lose it doesn't matter."
The Huskies are one of 15 Arizona teams in the two-day event hosting 88 total teams at various schools in Gilbert (a change from years past when the tournament was hosted by Chandler schools).
Hoophall West is in its third season in Arizona and consists of 10 games, and eight Arizona teams, over two days at Chaparral High. There are four games on Friday with
Basha (Chandler),
Shadow Mountain (Phoenix) and
Corona del Sol (Tempe) taking on Salesian College Prep (Richmond, Calif.), Archbishop Mitty (San Jose, Calif.) and St. Anthony (N.J.), respectively.
Then on Saturday,
Mountain View (Mesa),
Chaparral (Scottsdale),
St. Mary's (Phoenix) and
Shadow Mountain (Phoenix) get their chance against top teams from around the country.
By the end of the weekend each coach, and some of the players, will know more about themselves after their "Vegas trip" from the regular season.
Jason P. Skoda, a former Arizona Republic sports writer and current Prep Sports Director for 1013 Communications, is a 20-year sports writing veteran. Contact him at jskoda1024@aol.com.
