Steve’s Favorite Holiday Tournament Memories
It’s the first holiday season we haven’t been able to get out and to watch high school basketball during covid-19. So I sat and thought about the best tournaments I attended and coached in during the holiday tournament season. What…
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Continue ReadingIt’s the first holiday season we haven’t been able to get out and to watch high school basketball during covid-19. So I sat and thought about the best tournaments I attended and coached in during the holiday tournament season. What made them special and the first memory that pops to me when I hear it.
Public League Holiday Tournament
Location: Chicago State University
Not so long-ago CPS would host two tournaments. One during the holidays and the other in March. The holiday tournaments would be handpicked of who’s who in the league playing games at the Jacoby Dickens Center. A lot of times it would be the first or second time to see the best players the Chicago Public league had to offer all on the same day.
Favorite Memory
One of the better CPS games I watched was in 2007 when Farragut and Simeon battled in front of at the Memphis head coach John Calipari. Derrick Rose (Simeon) and Micheal Dunigan (Farragut) led teams in a back-and-forth game early on with Farragut getting the win. I don’t think I have ever seen Chicago State that crowded ever.
Hospitality Room
None
Big Dipper Tournament
Location: Rich South High School
This Chicago Heights gem has a special feel to it. The best teams in the South Suburbs would all be there to prove they are the best in the area. At Rich South High School it didn’t matter how cold it was outside the heat inside was insane. Another atmosphere where high school basketball enthusiasts didn’t have to come cheer for a particular team because it was an event.
Favorite Memory
In 2009 the Championship game of Hales Franciscan vs Crete-Monee was a barn burner of a game. It was so intense the floor looked as if it was sweating. A Patrick Miller led Hales team went on to win the game after his 9 straight points to open up the 4th quarter.
Hospitality Room
Good food from breakfast until dinner. Assortment of Pasta, Italian Beefs and endless Chili.
Pontiac Holiday Tournament
Location: Pontiac High School
Unlike many other Poniac isn’t my all-time favorite simply because I just haven’t been on a regular basis. But the few times I made the trip to the town of Pontiac I have left with memorable experiences. It is amazing that so many people make the trip to what is now considered the best holiday tournament in the state. What also surprised me is the warm small town feel this event has. The whole town comes out to watch these high school players and they know every single one of them. The kids flock to players for autographs and I have even saw a couple of adults trying to get signatures. The talent is usually the best from around the state coming to test how good they really are. I haven’t heard anyone speak bad about their Pontiac experience.
Favorite Memory
The 2013 event was maybe one of the best years for talent at Pontiac and the championship game I saw Curie (Cliff Alexander) battle Simeon (Ed Morrow). This game was a back-and-forth battle throughout the whole game. In the end Curie pulled away with a three point victory over Simeon.
Hospitality Room
Great selection from lunch until dinner. Lunch would consist of restaurants in the area, Wendy’s, TacoBell , Chic Fil A etc. By dinner time the towns best cooks would have made the best lasagna or sloppy joe you ever tasted. Also they have their own soft serve ice cream machine!
Jack Tosh Holiday Classic
Location: York High School
There are not many venues in the state of Illinois that can hold a 32 teams holiday tournament, but York high school does it without a hitch. The Jack Tosh is the largest single tournament in the state. It hosts some of the best and emerging teams throughout the city and suburbs. I think the novelty of this event is that you can go in between gyms all day seeing different styles of basketball. It can be exhausting to attend every day, but if you are a hoops junkie you would be in heaven.
Favorite Memory
I can’t remember the year exactly but I happened to walk in the gym and St. Ignatius was playing. There was this tall and lanky kid with glasses. Kid didn’t look like a basketball player at all. After 10 min of watching this kid play he had scored six points and had at least 5 rebounds in that time frame. I looked to find out the player was a sophomore and he turned out to have a rather good career at the University of Illinois. It was Nnana Egwu.
Hospitality Room
My only memory of the dishes was pizza and hot dogs from concession stands. It usually got the job done because there was so much basketball to watch you didn’t have much time expand your waistline.
The State Farm Classic
Location: Bloomington-Normal
The Classic is the largest holiday tournament in the state that consisted of four16 team brackets so 64 teams in all. Boys Large and Small brackets school and same for the girls side. Although most gyms were never full because games were all played at four different venues. The contrast of styles for each of the teams is fun to watch. The Classic host programs from all across the state giving more of a mid-major feel of high school teams in the state. Small schools usually get a precursor matchup to teams they would see come state tournament time and big schools get a chance to play a different style a basketball they do not usually see when they play games locally. Best part of State Farm Classic is Championship day when all four games are played at the Illinois Wesleyan Shirk Center. One of the most visually pleasing venues to see a basketball game.
Favorite Memory
My best memory of the event was as a coach playing the championship game in 2018. Kenwood (Seryee Lewis) v Rock Island (Jamir Price) matchup would go to overtime in an exhausting back and forth game. Rock Island would win by four points after foul trouble caught up to the Broncos.
Hospitality Room
One of the best in the state at hospitality. The Classic has sponsors from most of the restaurants in the city. Avanti’s Sandwiches, local pizza joints, etc. Every day is a food surprise. Best thing about it is every location was fully equipped on good eats.
Proviso West Tournament
Location: Proviso West High School
The Most historic holiday tournament around. When I hear holiday tournament the first thing I think about is Proviso West. From the historic players and teams in this event to some of the best holiday performances. Proviso West was the place to be. And yes over time it has fallen drastically as far as exciting games, but the drive to Hillside is always full of anticipation. Memories of driving around 20 times to find a parking spot to waiting in line in blistering cold always seemed worth it when the games were at its peak. Proviso was always crowded especially as each day got closer to Championship Day. This tournament is the one lone reason I became a huge high school basketball fan.
Favorite Memory
Again there are so many memories of this tournament from watching future NBA players to seeing unknown players become household names. My one distinct memory is from 2006 when St. Joes played Proviso East in one of the best championship games I’ve been in attendance to witness. It was a huge neighborhood rivalry with both schools having huge fan support to determine who had bragging rights. The whole night was intense and surpassed the expectations of fans in attendance. St. Joe’s was led by Evan Turner and Proviso East was led by Jacob Pullen. These two would have their own scoring battle amid this prize fight. The game came down to the final play as Evan Turner made the game winning assist to forward Garrett Leffelman as time expired.
Hospitality Room
Not much here on the food side. You pretty much didn’t leave the gym because each game was a gem. But they served pizza, hotdogs, popcorn and anything the concession had. And again you didn’t complain about it cause it was rare that you would visit the hospitality room in fear that you would lose your seat for the next game.