Paradise Valley Thanksgiving Tournament: Preview
Annually one of the most highly anticipated tournaments in Arizona is the Paradise Valley Thanksgiving Invitational. For years Coach Mark MacGowan & staff have put together a wonderful field of teams year in and year out. This year the 1st…
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Continue ReadingAnnually one of the most highly anticipated tournaments in Arizona is the Paradise Valley Thanksgiving Invitational. For years Coach Mark MacGowan & staff have put together a wonderful field of teams year in and year out. This year the 1st round games will be at Sandra Day O'Connor & Paradise Valley. Below is a preview of the teams in this years 2015 field.
Paradise Valley
The tournament hosts are always a contender no matter the season. This year is no different for the talented Trojans. Look for CJ VanBeekum & Dominic Rogiers among a deep pool of talent to help PV to compete and defend it's home court this week.
Horizon
This years version of the Horizon Huskies are a little bit older & wiser under legendary coach Jerry Conner. The run-n-gun Huskies will be led on the floor by Jake Hess, Joey Cipolletti, & rising frosh Aidyn Albright however that doesn't disrespect any of the Huskies as their 5 in, 5 out style of play makes each player a vital member of the team.
Chavez
A Donald Carter led Chavez team will always make for a tough matchup. In previous years Chavez has often times been one of the more slept on teams but year after year they have found themselves competing for a tournament title.
Perry
No Markus Howard, no problem. The Pumas must find a way to move on and create a new identity. Coach Joe Babinski does a tremendous job of getting the most out of his teams and expect this year to be no different for the Pumas. Kyle VanHaren will be a key player for Perry all year long.
Boulder Creek
Up in Anthem, the Jaguars have been developing young talent over the years now that talent is ready to bring home success like the 2010 state champions did. Look for guards Nick Johnson & Matt Downey to help push for a tourney title for the Jaguars.
North Canyon
NCHS is fresh off a move to D3, with that being said, Coach O'Guinn & team are ready for a fresh start after years of competing against some of the state's best on a nightly basis and competing hard just not being able to get over the hump. Look for 3 year starter Caleb Cota to lead his troops along with Tre O'Guinn, Charles Howard & Sam Naser.
Valley Vista
Valley Vista is ready to compete led behind senior Tre-Anthony Walker, the Monsoon are going to need to find a new source of energy after losing some key players. Don't be surprised to see the Monsoon competing for wins this weekend.
Fairfax
Fairfax over the years has been building toward this season. This years team fields a lot of senior talent. Look for the maturity and experience to come together and help Fairfax have a special season with starts here at the PV invite.
Apollo
Apollo is led by some of the best talents in the state like Dre Marin, Holland Woods, & Jeff Perez. Many years of development have to led to this year with the talent on the team becoming older, mature and gaining more experience. Look for the Hawks to push for a tourney championship.
Arcadia
Arcadia despite graduating a lot will have a great chance of going far this weekend led behind the strong play of Matt Burton, Elijah Sikora & Max Moses. The Titans & Coach Stephen Danford are always contenders.
Sandra Day O’Connor
Coach Matt King has done a great job in the few short years he has been at SDO now with a strong culture establish he looks to push forward with a strong set of young talent that has been working together for a number of years now and looks to make a push this season and weekend ahead.
Desert Ridge
1 Name. Timmy Allen. One of the hottest name in the west coast since last high school season. He is surrounded by lots of talent but the young talent mixed with leadership at DRHS will make for a very exciting season and weekend.
McClintock
Behind the deadly duo of Malique Washington & Amiri Chukwuemeka?, McClintock has arguably one of the best backcourts in AZ. Look for both guards to play unselfish and work off of each other to cause matchup problems for opponents.
North
The Mustangs are trying to get back to the days of old when they were competing for championships. Look for North to start first by competing this weekend in the tournament. Coach Bustos does a good job of working well with the talent he has.
Washington
Despite losing a key player to transfer the Rams will look to surprise a lot of people by competing with a lot of the great teams in the tournament and the schedule they face during the season.
Deer Valley
The Skyhawks coached by Jed Dunn will always play a tough brand of selfless team basketball. Look for Bryce Davis & Devin Breckner to be two players for Deer Valley to push them to contend very well this weekend at the PV invite tourney.