By Julie Buehler
Kawhi Leonard won the most recent NBA Finals MVP. But before he did that he played in the Max Prep Holiday Classic.
During the 2013-2014 NCAA Tournament, Kentucky was led by a freshman class that was historically good and when Aaron Harrison drained winning buzzer-beater after winning buzzer-beater, the whole nation was gripped with excitement, but did you know local sports fans had been treated to Harrison and his twin bother’s talents just the year before as they were part of the Max Preps Holiday Classic that is played in the Coachella Valley every year between Christmas and New Year.
That means this year, you too can catch a sneak peak at high school talent that will could be leading the national conversation at collegiate superstars.
The tournament will be held at various high schools throughout town with newly constructed Rancho Mirage High as the host and seven other sites between Dec 26th-30.
The defending national champions, Mater Dei out of Santa Ana is headlining the incredible talent that comes from all over the country to participate in this tournament.
There are 6 state and section title winners from last season. Thirteen of the 17 teams in the Invitational Division won 20 or more games last year and while the tourney is always stacked with California teams, the classic has become more of an international event with teams from 30 states and 6 countries participating in the decade-plus event.
Some teams to keep an out for according to MaxPreps.com include, not only the 35-0 Mater Dei who finished off a fourth straight championship campaign last year but also Sierra Canyon. They went 29-4 last year and did so with 4 freshmen in the rotation, including National Freshman of the Year, Cody Riley and a USA basketball gold medalist in Devearl Ramsey.
You can catch Texas private school state champion in Prestonwood Christian, California juggernauts in Archbishop Mitty, Folsom, J Serra Catholic and Moreau Catholic. They all won their section championships.
The Invitational Division features formidable state title contenders from Georgia, Utah, Washington and Wisconsin.
“The MaxPreps Holiday Classic keeps getting better. Last year’s Classic was simply amazing with a brand new venue and great teams and fantastic games,” MaxPreps Founder and President Andy Beal said. “This year is shaping up to be even better with defending MaxPreps national champion Mater Dei and top teams from throughout the country playing for the gold ball.”
If you’d like more information including schedule and where games are being played go to www.DesertHeatHolidayClassic.com and schedule where you want to catch a glimpse of the future of basketball talent.
Julie Buehler hosts the Coachella Valley’s most popular sports talk radio show, “Buehler’s Day Off” every day from 3-6 on 1010 KXPS, the valley’s all sports station. She can also be seen every morning between 6-7am on KMIR sharing the coolest stories in sports. She’s an avid gym rat, slightly sarcastic and more likely to recite Steve Young’s career passing stats than American Idol winners. Tune in M-F 3-6 pst at www.team1010.com or watch “Buehler’s Day Off” on Ustream and KMIR.com for her sports reports.
