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<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Knoxville is the place to be this upcoming weekend. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Friday, December 13th</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Lee Athletic Center</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":5} --> <h5 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>4:30pm Hardin Valley (TN) vs. Pope John Paul II (TN)</strong><br><strong>6:00pm Webb (TN) vs. Hardin Valley (TN)</strong> Girls<br><strong>​7:30pm Webb (TN) vs. St. Anne's-Belfield (VA)<br>9:00pm Huntsville (AL) vs. Maryville (TN)</strong></h5> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Haslam Center</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":5} --> <h5 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>4:30pm</strong> <strong>Hamilton Heights (TN) vs. Alcoa (TN)</strong> Girls<br><strong><strong>6:00pm</strong></strong> <strong>Fort Payne (AL) vs. Greeneville (TN)</strong><br><strong><strong>7:30pm</strong></strong> <strong>Buckhorn (AL) vs. Alcoa (TN)</strong><br><strong>9:00pm</strong> <strong>Springdale Prep (MD) vs. Boyd County (KY)</strong></h5> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Saturday, December 14th</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Lee Athletic Center</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":5} --> <h5 class="wp-block-heading"><strong><strong>11:00am</strong></strong> <strong>Buckhorn (AL) vs. Boyd County (KY)</strong><br><strong>12:30pm</strong> <strong>Pope John Paul II (TN) vs. Maryville (TN)</strong><br><strong><strong>2:00pm</strong></strong> <strong>Hamilton Heights (TN) vs. Springdale Prep (MD</strong>)<br><strong><strong>3:30pm</strong></strong> <strong>Moravian Prep (NC) vs. Webb (TN)</strong><br><strong><strong>5:30pm</strong></strong> <strong>St. Anne's-Belfield (VA) vs. Huntsville (AL)</strong><br><strong><strong>7:00pm</strong></strong> <strong>Alcoa (TN) vs. Fort Payne (AL)</strong><br><strong><strong>8:30pm</strong></strong> <strong>Alcoa (TN) vs. Webb (TN)</strong> Girls</h5> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading">Haslam Center</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":5} --> <h5 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>6:00pm</strong> <strong>Hamilton Heights (TN) vs. Hardin Valley (TN)</strong> Girls<br><strong>7:30pm</strong> <strong>Greeneville (TN) vs. Hardin Valley (TN)</strong></h5> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Five Headliner Games</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>1. Webb School of Knoxville (TN) vs. Moravian Prep (NC)- 3:30pm on December 14th&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The host Spartans return 4 starters from a team that reached the DII-AA State Semifinals a season ago, and they will take  on quite the challenge in Moravian Prep. Moravian Prep, based in Hickory, NC, competes in the Overtime Elite league as  the YNG Dreamerz. They are led by Eli Ellis, a South Carolina signee who was named 2024 Overtime Elite MVP and is currently averaging 29.8 points per game. He is joined by fellow Division 1 signees Hayden Assemian, Abu Yarmah,  Caden Miller, Tahj Walters, Melakih Cunningham, along with top juniors Kohl Rosario and Isaac Ellis. The Spartans will lean on a balanced attack of [player_tooltip player_id='1299479' first='Jaylen' last='Pompey'], Alex Leeth, [player_tooltip player_id='1642603' first='Owen' last='Lentz'], [player_tooltip player_id='1277259' first='Cam' last='Swearengen'], and [player_tooltip player_id='2296673' first='Wilson' last='Luton'] to compete with Moravian.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>2. Huntsville (AL) vs. St. Anne's Belfield (VA)- 5:30pm on December 14th&nbsp;</strong>Two out of state teams will meet in Knoxville for a matchup between top 30 teams in the nation. In MaxPreps' most recent rankings, Huntsville moved up to 23^rdoverall, and for good reason. They are 10-0 on the season and are led by 5 college signees (4 Division 1), including future Auburn Tiger [player_tooltip player_id='1398759' first='Simon' last='Walker']. St. Anne's Belfield (#28 in MaxPreps' rankings) also brings plenty of firepower to the contest, including 4-star PG and Virginia Player of the Year Chance Mallory, along with Division 1 signees Austin Williford, Danzelle Bullock Coles, and junior Connor Lyons. This matchup will showcase two of the best teams in the country and help decide national standings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>3. Webb School of Knoxville (TN) vs. St. Anne's Belfield (VA)- 7:30pm on December 13th </strong>The primetime matchup on Friday night features two teams already mentioned. St. Anne's Belfield made it to the VISAA State Championship Game in 2023-24 before falling to the #1 ranked team in the nation, Paul VI. Webb was put out in the DII-AA State Semifinals by Brentwood Academy. Both teams will look to use this game as not only a measuring stick, but also a springboard for the rest of their season.&nbsp;<br></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>4. Maryville (TN) vs. Huntsville (AL)- 9:00pm on December 13th&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>The Maryville Rebels had a breakthrough season in 2023-24, winning the Region Championship and making it all the way to the AAAA State Quarterfinals. And they return enough talent to make it further this year. [player_tooltip player_id='2358309' first='Jonathan' last='Woodlee'] and standout [player_tooltip player_id='2345574' first='Brayden' last='Hazelbaker'] are joined by college prospects [player_tooltip player_id='2623856' first='Eli' last='Owensby'] and [player_tooltip player_id='1787950' first='Luke' last='Sigmund'], along with 4-star football recruit Brody Smith. The Rebels are seeking a signature win against one of the nation's top teams to kickstart their season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p><strong>5. Alcoa (TN) vs. Buckhorn (AL)</strong>- <strong>7:30pm on December 13th&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Back-to-Back State Champions vs. Back-to-Back State Champions. While Jahvin Carter graduated and is now contributing at Penn State, the Alcoa Tornadoes still have plenty of talent to push for a Three-Peat. Sophomores [player_tooltip player_id='2333265' first='Condis' last='Cherry'], Jahmir Dean, and [player_tooltip player_id='2281200' first='Jay' last='Kirk'] provide a deadly young nucleus to go along with veterans like [player_tooltip player_id='2350882' first='Eli' last='Graf'] and [player_tooltip player_id='2281190' first='Jibriel' last='Koko']. The Buckhorn Bucks come to Knoxville on the heels of consecutive state championships and bring with them Division 1 recruit [player_tooltip player_id='1599779' first='Jeremiah' last='Wilson'] and State Tournament MVP [player_tooltip player_id='1944166' first='Fred' last='Derrick']. The battle of state champions should be a fun one to&nbsp;watch.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->