The stage is set to crown a high school basketball national champion this week at the Suncoast Credit Union Arena in Fort Myers, Fla., as 10 teams converge for GEICO Nationals. Unless a Cinderella story emerges, the winner will likely top the final MaxPreps Top 25 rankings.
Play begins Wednesday and continues through Saturday, when the champion will be crowned at noon ET on ESPN. National No. 1
Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) enters as a slight favorite and will be looking for its fifth GEICO Nationals title since 2013.
Among the biggest storylines entering the event will be a notable void in the lineup for one of the contenders. Top 50 senior
prospect
Da'Ron Holmes was ruled ineligible by the tournament committee and won't suit up for No. 2
AZ Compass Prep (Chandler, Ariz.) after missing the transfer
deadline.
According
to GEICO Nationals officials, the rule has been on the books for
several years though the application of it in this situation appears
harsh. Jaden Akins transferred to Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.) less than
one week prior to the arrival of Holmes and has been deemed eligible to
participate.
With Holmes, AZ Compass Prep beat No. 2 seed Sunrise Christian earlier this season and took Montverde Academy to overtime before suffering its lone setback. The Dragons face No. 10
Wasatch Academy (Mt. Pleasant, Utah) in the opening round in a contest that pits two of the top senior guards in the country – MaxPreps National Player of the Year candidate
TyTy Washington
and McDonald's All-American selection
Nolan Hickman (Kentucky signee).
GEICO Nationals winners in 2013, 2014, 2015 and 2018, Montverde Academy is led by No. 2-ranked junior prospect
Jalen Duren and senior sharpshooter
Caleb Houstan
(Michigan signee). The Eagles have won 45 of their last 46 games
dating back to the start of last season and remained No. 1 in
MaxPreps Top 25 for the entirety of that span.
Montverde Academy could secure its third national championship in four years at GEICO Nationals.
Photo by David Rosenblum
Montverde's first-round game is against Wednesday's play-in winner featuring first-time participant and Georgia AA champion No. 15
Pace Academy (Atlanta) and unranked tournament mainstay
Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.). Head coach Steve Smith's Warriors have struggled a bit this season but an always-talented roster provides stiff competition for a Pace Academy team entering with 28 consecutive wins.
Wednesday's other play-in game pits No. 12
Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.) against
La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.), which enters with a sub-.500 record. Prolific Prep is making its first GEICO Nationals appearance after receiving an invite in 2020 only to see it canceled due to the pandemic.
No. 3 Sunrise Christian draws the Prolific Prep-La Lumiere winner. A deep, talented rotation is led by a pair of five-star seniors in versatile guard
Kennedy Chandler (Tennessee signee) and impact wing
Kendall Brown (Baylor). The Buffaloes are the only team to knock off Montverde Academy in the past two seasons, handing the Eagles a rare home loss in early February.
The four-day tournament is available
ESPN family of networks, either streaming or broadcast (full schedule below).
GEICO Nationals schedule
Wednesday, March 31Games on ESPN3, All times ET6 p.m. — Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.) vs. La Lumiere (La Porte, Ind.)
8 p.m. — Pace Academy (Atlanta) vs. Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.)
Thursday, April 1Games on ESPNUNoon — IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) vs. Milton (Ga.)
2 p.m. — Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.) vs. Prolific Prep/La Lumiere winner
4 p.m. — Montverde Academy (Montverde, Fla.) vs. Pace/Oak Hill winner
6 p.m. — AZ Compass Prep (Chandler, Ariz.) vs. Wasatch Academy (Mt. Pleasant, Utah)
Friday, April 2Games on ESPN22:30 p.m. — Semifinal
4:30 p.m. — Semifinal
Saturday, April 3Game on ESPNNoon — Championship
