Michael Gilchrist and St. Patrick face Bishop Gorman at the Spalding Hoophall Classic.
Photo courtesy of USA Basketball/Steven Maikoski
Last week we looked at the
top tournaments for the upcoming high school basketball season. This week we shift focus to the top non-tournament events (shootout style).
Listed chronologically, a road map to the nation's top events coast-to-coast;
Marshall County Hoopfest
Reed Conder Gymnasium – Benton, Ky. / Dec. 3-4
Featured teams: Christ School (Arden, N.C.),
Duncanville (Duncanville, Texas),
Melrose (Memphis, Tenn.),
Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.),
Quality Education Academy (Winston-Salem, N.C.)Best matchups: Christ School vs. Quality Education; Oak Hill Academy vs. Quality Education; Christian County (Hopkinsville, Ky.) vs. Melrose
Breakdown: Although the Hoopfest doesn’t seem to have quite as much firepower as it has in past years, it will provide an early look at national championship contenders Melrose and Oak Hill Academy.
Hoops in Overdrive Shoot-Out
Centennial High School – Roswell, Ga. / Dec. 30-Jan. 1, 2011
Featured teams: Milton (Alpharetta, Ga.),
Norcross (Ga.),
Oak Ridge Military Academy (Oak Ridge, N.C.),
Quality Education Academy (Winston-Salem, N.C.),
Rockdale County (Conyers, Ga.),
Winter Park (Winter Park, Fla.)Best matchups: Greenville (Ga.) vs. Rockdale County; Milton vs. Winter Park
Breakdown: With a number of prep programs in the three-day event, there will be Division I talent on the floor at all times in Roswell. Organizer Kenn Littlefield also deserves major kudos for getting Milton and Winter Park together.
Cancer Research Classic
Alma Grace McDonough Center – Wheeling, W.Va. / Jan. 8, 2011
Featured teams: Christ the King (Middle Village, N.Y.),
DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.),
Gonzaga (Washington, District of Columbia),
Mount Vernon (Mt. Vernon, N.Y.),
Neumann & Goretti (Philadelphia, Pa.),
Northland (Columbus, Ohio),
Rice (New York, N.Y.),
St. Benedict's Prep (Newark, N.J.)Best matchups: Northland vs. Rice; DeMatha vs. St. Benedict's Prep; Gonzaga vs. Christ the King
Breakdown: Fans won't find a better one-day lineup than the one slated for Wheeling. Could be as many as a handful of nationally-ranked teams taking the same court on the same day.
Spalding Hoophall Classic
Blake Arena – Springfield, Mass. / Jan. 14-17, 2011
Featured teams: Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.),
Christ the King (Middle Village, N.Y.),
DeMatha (Hyattsville, Md.),
Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.),
Garfield (Seattle, Wash.),
Jamesville-DeWitt (DeWitt, N.Y.),
Milton (Alpharetta, Ga.),
Morgan Park (Chicago, Ill.),
Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.),
St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.),
St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.),
St. Mark's (Southborough, Mass.)Best matchups: DeMatha vs. St. Anthony; Milton vs. Oak Hill Academy; Bishop Gorman vs. St. Patrick
Breakdown: The Hoophall Classic features 24 games over four days and even has a top girls contest with Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.) facing Murray Bergtraum (New York, N.Y.). The event has something for every high school hoop fan with potentially double-digit preseason top 25 teams and 11 of the top 25 players in MaxPreps.com's 2011 Top 100.
Flyin' to the Hoop
Trent Arena – Dayton, Ohio / Jan. 15-17, 2011
Featured teams: Hamilton Southeastern (Fishers, Ind.),
Miller Grove (Lithonia, Ga.),
Perspectives Charter (Chicago, Ill.),
Simeon (Chicago, Ill.),
Wheeler (Marietta, Ga.),
Whitney Young (Chicago, Ill.)Best matchups: Dunbar vs. Simeon; Marshall vs. Miller Grove; Wayne vs. Whitney Young
Breakdown: Eric Horstman does a great job of bringing the talent to Dayton each year. Anthony Davis of Perspectives – No. 6 in MaxPreps.com's 2011 Top 100 – is the individual headliner. Whitney Young brings two of the top big men in the classes of 2013 (6-foot-10 Thomas Hamilton) and 2014 (6-9 Jahlil Okafor). Junior guard Gary Harris of Hamilton Southeastern is rated No. 23 overall in the 2012 class.
Nike Extravaganza
Mater Dei High School – Santa Ana, Calif. / Feb. 4-5, 2011
Featured teams: Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.),
De La Salle (Concord, Calif.),
Fairfax (Los Angeles, Calif.),
Long Beach Poly (Long Beach, Calif.),
Mater Dei (Santa Ana, Calif.),
Price (Los Angeles, Calif.),
Taft (Woodland Hills, Calif.),
Westchester (Los Angeles, Calif.)Best matchups: Bishop Gorman vs. Long Beach Poly
Breakdown: This event is a little more Cali-centric than it has been in previous years with teams like St. Benedict's Prep and St. Patrick making the trip out West. It's also hurt a bit by the fact that several of California's dynasties are in re-tooling mode (Fairfax, Mater Dei, Westchester). But Bishop Gorman-Long Beach Poly is a major impact game nationally and a young host team could be clicking by the time they meet up with Norvell Pelle and Price in another intriguing tilt.
PrimeTime Shootout
Kean University – Union, N.J. / Feb. 11-13, 2011
Featured teams: Findlay Prep (Henderson, Nev.),
Life Center Academy (Burlington, N.J.),
Melrose (Memphis, Tenn.),
Montrose Christian (Rockville, Md.),
Quality Education Academy (Winston-Salem, N.C.),
St. Anthony (Jersey City, N.J.),
St. Benedict's Prep (Newark, N.J.),
St. Patrick (Elizabeth, N.J.)Best matchups: Findlay Prep vs. Montrose Christian; Melrose vs. St. Patrick
Breakdown: Not all the details of the multi-site, multi-date PrimeTime Shootout have been announced, but the Melrose-St. Patrick showdown could have a huge impact on the national rankings this late in the season.
Others: City-Suburban Showdown (Chicago, Ill., Feb. 19); Dan Finn Classic (Jersey City, N.J., Jan. 15, 2011); Pangos Dream Classic (Las Vegas, Nev., Jan. 8); King Holiday Hoopfest (Seattle, Wash., Jan. 15, 2011)
