The 2013 MaxPreps Holiday Classic is about to sizzle

PALM SPRINGS, Calif. — For the 119 teams traveling across the country — and abroad — to compete in the 11th MaxPreps Holiday Classic, co-tournament director Rob Hanmer has some advice.

Bring your shorts – and some sunscreen. It's going to be warm. Even the day after Christmas.


While the rest of the country is in a deep freeze, Palm Springs and surrounding areas is supposed to be hovering around 80 degrees during the five-day tournament, Dec. 26-30.

"The weather is going to be spectacular," Hanmer said.

Which is a good description of the host venue — brand spanking new Rancho Mirage (Calif.) — as well of the prospects of one of the largest tournaments in the country.

Teams from 11 different states and three countries, including Canada and Australia, will partake in the event, highlighted by the 24-team Invitational Division with boasts 15 programs that won 20 games or more in 2012-13.

Championship contenders from Alabama, Arizona, Florida, Ohio, Oregon, Missouri, Texas, Utah and Washington will join a strong contingent of California squads, including perennial national power Westchester (Los Angeles) to defend its title.

See current rankings of those teams are below

Westchester, coached by six-time state champion Ed Azzam, defeated Fort Bend Travis (Richmond, Texas) featuring current Kentucky freshmen twins Aaron and Andrew Harrison in the final last December 70-62.

As fantastic as that final and competitive as that final was, what most — including MaxPreps founder and President Andy Beal — remember most about lost year was Westchester's 70-59 win over Harvard-Westlake the night before that was proceeded by a 3-point contest and spectacular dunk contest.

More than 2,000 fans stuck around to watch unassuming 5-foot-8 junior Ryan Lough, of King (Riverside, Calif.) throw down a 360 slam on his first attempt en route to surprising and entertaining title.

The soft-spoken guard thrilled the crowd who groaned and cheered at his every attempt. SEE STORY.

With Lough back to defend his title and 40 other dunkers entered — yes 40! — the semifinals and contests to follow on Saturday promise to bring even more electricity to the tournament.

It's what Beal is looking forward to most in the 2013 MPHC.

For those who can't make it to Rancho Mirage that night, can watch it and the semifinals live on the home page of MaxPreps.com, powered by the NFHS Network 

"Recreating — even improving upon — the magic of that night would be fantastic," he said. "The big enthusiastic crowds, the smiling faces, the big dunks and just great basketball."

Here are three other highlights of the tournament Beal is looking forward to.

"One is simply providing all the team at every level great competition in a fun environment for players, families and coaches.

"Two, feasting on the amazing barbecue beef sandwiches served at the snack bar (smile).

"And three, a night to provide fellowship for coaches."

That's something Beal, a former head and assistant coach in Northern California, looks forward to partaking in personal as does Hanmer.

Though he, co-director Wayne Merino and tournament coordinator Chris Stonebraker have been working nonstop for months to put on a first-class tournament during the Holiday season, Hanmer said the gathering of his good coaching friends is priceless.

"I have so many coaching friends all over the country and for us to come together in one spot is very special," he said.

In a special spot. Particularly the new home spot, which is also the place Hanmer is a new coach.

After spending 15 years at nearby Cathedral City, he took over the program at new and state-of-the-art Rancho Mirage, which doesn't yet have a varsity program. He's coached the program's JV team to an 8-1 start.

"Building a program from the ground up is very appealing to me," he said. "It's a great opportunity."

The new Rancho Mirage gym is spectacular, with two gyms. "People will be blown away," he said. "It definitely adds to the excitement."

The most excitement personnel wise should come from the tournament's top five senior recruits, all among the Top 100 according to 247Sports. They are:

No. 36, Kameron Chatman of Columbia Christian (Portland, Ore.). – The 6-foot-7, 190-pound forward has already committed to Michigan and is a transfer from Long Beach Poly. His game, shooting range and body continues to grow.

No. 43, Justin Coleman of Wenonah (Birmingham, Ala.) – The 5-10, 150-pound point guard and Alabama commit has been lighting it up for the three-time defending Alabama champion, averaging 31.0 points, 4.1 rebounds, 3.9 assists and 3.7 steals per game. His team is 10-0 and is No. 11 in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 national rankings.

No. 44, Jordan McLaughlin of Etiwanda (Calif.) – The 5-11, 162-pound point guard has already committed to USC for the 16th-ranked Hawks who are 10-0. McLaughlin will join 2011 MaxPreps Holiday Classic All-Tournament selection Katlin Reinhardt, a Mater Dei graduate, at USC.

No. 81, Tra Holder of Brentwood School (Los Angeles) – Yet another point guard, the 6-foot senior has already committed to Arizona State. Through eight games, Holder is averaging 25 points, 6.1 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game.

No. 84, Michael Humphrey of Sunnyslope (Phoenix, Ariz.) – The 6-9 power forward has already committed to Stanford. The 205-pounder is a good mid-range shooter and likes to get out on the break. He's upside is a wide as his wingspan.

McLaughlin leads the Invitational Division favorite Etiwanda (10-0), which is ranked 10th in the country by the MaxPreps computer ranking and No. 15 in the Xcellent 25. See MaxPreps rankings.

Here are the Invitational division team computer rankings updated with current records.

1. Etiwanda (Calif.) 10-0 record, No. 10 overall country
2. Westchester (Los Angeles) 7-3, No. 44
3. Sunnyslope (Phoenix, Ariz.) 8-0, No. 79
4. Capital Christian (Sacramento, Calif.) 10-2, No. 84
5. St. Edward (Lakewood, Ohio) 3-0, No. 115
6. Bellevue (Bellevue, Wash.) 5-0, No. 174
7. American Fork (Utah) 4-2, No. 216
8. Long Beach Poly (Calif.) 5-3, No. 229
9. Wenonah (Birmingham, Ala.), 11-2, No. 233
10. King (Riverside, Calif.), 8-1, No. 275
11. Alemany (Mission Hills, Calif.) 8-2, No. 331
12. Catalina Foothills (Tucson, Ariz.), 8-1, No. 412
13. JSerra Catholic (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) 6-2, No. 521
14. Calabasas (Calif.), 7-3, No. 577
15. Christian Brothers (St. Louis, Mo.), 4-2, No. 624
16. Issaquah (Wash.), 3-1, No. 724
17. De La Salle (Concord, Calif.) 4-1, No. 835
18. Tampa Catholic (Tampa, Fla.), 10-1, No. 951
19. Beverly Hills (Calif.) 3-3, No. 1,203
20. Harvard-Westlake (Studio City, Calif.) 4-4, No. 1,526
21. Leuzinger (Lawndale, Calif.) 3-5, No. 2,536
22. Columbia Christian (Portland, Ore.) 6-1, No. 2,564
23. Orangewood Academy (Garden Grove, Calif.) 4-4, No. 4,231
24. Jackson (Mill Creek, Wash.) 2-0, No. NA
Note: Jackson couldn't be ranked because it hasn't played enough games.

Other boys divisions: Anchorage Christian (Anchorage, Alaska), Brentwood School (Los Angeles), Cabrillo (Long Beach, Calif.), Capistrano Valley (Mission Viejo, Calif.), Cathedral Catholic (San Diego, Calif.), Cathedral City (Cathedral City, Calif.), Chaparral (Temecula, Calif.), Citrus Hill (Perris, Calif.), Colton (Calif.), Costa Mesa (Calif.), Crenshaw (Los Angeles), Dana Hills (Dana Point, Calif.), Diamond Bar (Calif.), Downey (Calif.), El Camino (Oceanside, Calif.), Folsom (Calif.), Foothill (Henderson, Nev.), Godinez (Santa Ana, Calif.), Great Oak (Temecula, Calif.), Green Valley (Henderson, Nev.), Independence (Bakersfield, Calif.), Irvington (Fremont, Calif.), La Quinta (Calif.), Lakeside (Lake Elsinore, Calif.), Leuzinger (Lawndale, Calif.), Liberty Christian (Huntington Beach, Calif.), Los Osos (Rancho Cucamonga, Calif.), Madison-Ridgeland Academy (Madison, Miss.), Maranatha (Pasadena, Calif.), Palm Valley (Rancho Mirage, Calif.), Menlo (Atherton, Calif.), Miller (Fontana, Calif.), Mission Prep (San Luis Obispo, Calif.), Moreau Catholic (Hayward, Calif.), Newport Harbor (Newport Beach, Calif.), J.W. North (Riverside, Calif.), Oceanside (Calif.), Palm Desert (Calif.), Palm Springs (Calif.), Patriot (Riverside, Calif.), Palos Verdes Peninsula (Rolling Hills Estates, Calif.), Perris (Calif.), Pleasant Grove (Elk Grove, Calif.), Prince Alfred (Kent Town, Australia), Providence (Burbank, Calif.), Rancho Cucamonga (Calif.), Ridgeview (Redmond, Ore.), Samuel Robertson (Maple Ridge, Canada), Santiago (Corona, Calif.), Shadow Hills (Indio, Calif.), Sierra Pacific (Hanford, Calif.), Sierra Vista (Las Vegas, Nev.), Simi Valley (Calif.), Temescal Canyon (Lake Elsinore, Calif.), Thousand Oaks (Calif.), Torrance (Calif.), Victor Valley (Victorville, Calif.), Viewpoint (Calabasas, Calif.), Villa Park (Calif.), Villanova Prep (Ojai, Calif.), Vista (Calif.), Xavier Prep (Palm Desert, Calif.)

Girls Division: Bellevue (Wash.), Dana Hills (Dana Point, Calif.), Downey (Calif.), La Costa Canyon (Carlsbad, Calif.), La Quinta (Calif.), Laguna Beach (Calif.), Mount Si (Snoqualmie, Wash.), Palm Desert (Calif.), Samuel Robertson (Maple Ridge, Canada), San Dimas (Calif.), San Juan Hills (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.), Shadow Hills (Indio, Calif.)

Desert Christian Boys Division: Academy for Academic Excellence (Apple Valley, Calif.), Brethren Christian (Huntington Beach, Calif.), Desert Christian Academy (Bermuda Dunes, Calif.), Excelsior Charter (Victorville, Calif.), Joshua Springs (Yucca Valley, Calif.), Loma Linda Academy (Loma Linda, Calif.), Pacifica Christian (Santa Monica, Calif.), Riverside Christian (Riverside, Calif.)

Desert Christian Girls Division: Brethren Christian (Huntington Beach, Calif.), Cathedral City (Calif.), Desert Christian (Lancaster, Calif.), Desert Mirage (Thermal, Calif.), Joshua Springs (Yucca Valley, Calif.), Loma Linda Academy (Loma Linda, Calif.), Palm Valley (Rancho Mirage, Calif.), Pacifica Christian (Santa Monica, Calif.)

All games will be live scored by Qwixcore, MaxPreps’ live scoring mobile technology platform, and available to follow for free on the team pages throughout MaxPreps.com. In addition, MaxPreps.com will be live streaming both semifinal games from Rancho Mirage High School on Saturday as well as the 3-point and dunk contests. NFHS Network will offer streaming coverage of the Invitational Division winners brackets through subscription plans.

Find the full list of tournament teams, schedules, and participating gymnasium venues in the Palm Springs area here: http://www.maxprepsholidayclassic.com/.