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PLEASANT GROVE — The high school football season wrapped up on Friday with Skyridge's first title in program history over 6A power Corner Canyon, and Lehi completing an undefeated season with a triple-overtime win over Timpview in the 5A finale.
That means the high school basketball season is just getting started — and what a start it is.
Wasatch Academy will host some of the best teams in the state, and a few of the top teams in the nation, on Tuesday and Wednesday at Pleasant Grove High with the 5 For The Fight National Hoopfest of Utah County, a two-day pre-Thanksgiving extravaganza.
It features both 6A finalists last year, the Utah-based NIBC side ranked ninth nationally by MaxPreps, and national powers like top-ranked Montverde Academy, No. 2 AZ Compass Prep, No. 4 Sunrise Christian from Kansas, and Bishop Walsh from Maryland.
It's all part of a two-day feast of hoops, with games tipping off as early as 11:30 a.m. MST through 8 p.m. MST. A handful of games will be streamed on ESPN+, and tickets are available at NationalHoop.com and through the promotion's eventbrite page.
"We always travel, and I just wished we could do something out here," said Wasatch Academy's Paul Peterson, the head coach of Utah's National Interscholastic Basketball Conference squad who partnered with Ion Solar owner Dave Rasmussen, Travis Haddock from National Hoopfest, and Utah Jazz owner and 5 For The Fight co-founder Ryan Smith to sponsor the event.
"NIBC got wind of it and they asked if they could wrap a couple of NIBC games in it."
Under terms of the sponsorship, $5 from each ticket sold will fund cancer research through the Qualtrics co-founder's nonprofit initiative.
We definitely had some fun in a historic 2021-22 season 😎 Who's ready for next season already⁉️— 2022-23 schedule drop soon 👀 @MVABasketball@IMGABasketball@LaLuBasketball@lec_hoops@BWSpartansHoops@oakhillacademy@WATigersBB@sunrisehoopspic.twitter.com/0NMohEMYtC
— NIBC (@NIBCOfficial) July 21, 2022
In addition to the Tigers' game against Bishop Walsh, Montverde's matchup with AZ Compass, and the Dragon's day-two game with Sunrise Christian, Pleasant Grove's tournament finale against Montverde will also be streamed on ESPN+, the streaming service that backs NIBC regular-season contests, as well.
The Vikings are led by 6-foot-9 double-digit scorer Isaac Garrett and Bron Roberts, the 6-foot-10 center who has interest from BYU, Clemson, Stanford and others as the No. 2-rated recruit in the state by 247Sports.
"These teams have coaches who have been in the game for 20-plus years," Peterson added. "That makes a huge difference, with guys who have won multiple state championships at multiple levels. We have some legendary, championship-caliber coaches in this state, and we're looking forward to hosting them all."
The list of entrants also includes Bingham, Cyprus, RSL Basketball Academy, defending champion 6A American Fork and Corner Canyon, which MaxPreps rates as the best team in Utah in its annual preseason rankings of the top teams in each state.
"Bingham has great guard play and Corner Canyon has the size," Peterson said. "Brody Kozlowski is one of my favorite players of all time; I love that kid, and I expect all of these programs to do really well.
"These players play together all summer long these days. Some of them have been playing together since they were little kids, and they have that chemistry. Corner Canyon, American Fork, a bunch of these other schools, they're all going to Border League and the Great Western Classic (as club teams) and playing against some of the best teams in the country. They've competed really well, too."
As for the hosts, Wasatch Academy returns only a small number of players from last year's squad, most notably two-time captain Jerry Huang, a 6-foot-2 guard from Taiwan who has spent his career at Mount Pleasant.
The Tigers added Juan Diego transfer Malick Diallo, a 6-foot-9 center who is the No. 2-rated recruit in Utah in 247Sports' Class of 2024 and the skill of a shooting guard, Peterson said.
Four-star guard R.J. Jones highlights a trio of top-tier transfers, and the Kansas State signee from Dallas instantly became the state's No. 1 recruit in the 247Sports Class of 2023 upon his arrival in the Beehive State.
"He's an everything player who will run the point for us," Peterson said. "He can be a playmaker, he shoots at a high level, and he scores. Now he's also adding the ability to run an offense and being a leader and captain with us."
Other key Tigers an keep an eye on are Collin Murray-Boyles, a 6-foot-7 senior wing and the No. 41-rated small forward in the country by On3 Sports from Columbia, South Carolina, who recently committed to his hometown Gamecocks over SMU, Coastal Carolina, St. Bonaventure and New Mexico State, among others.
Then there's Isiah Harwell, a 6-foot-5 sophomore from Pocatello, Idaho, who earned the No. 3 rating from On3 Sports' Class of 2025. The five-star recruit already counts Baylor, Creighton, North Carolina, Texas, Kansas, Houston and UCLA among his suitors while playing with Utah Prospect, where he averages 12.6 points per game on the adidas 3SSB 17U circuit over the summer
"Isiah's a dynamic scorer; that's what he does best," Peterson said. "He does a little bit of everything, but can score at all three levels. Isiah's a big guard who isn't opposed to contact, but he can also drain it from three big-time."
