Mater Dei to Play in Top Basketball Tournament

Some of the nation’s top high school boys’ basketball teams, including State Division I champion Mater Dei, will participate in the inaugural Nike Classic Dec. 8-9 at the Bren Center.

A series of three-game matchups are planned for each evening, the last of which will be Mater Dei against Mouth of Wilson (Va.) Oak Hill Academy at 9 p.m. Saturday. Oak Hill handed Mater Dei its only defeat last season in the final of the Las Vegas Holiday Prep Classic.

Friday’s schedule begins with a 6 p.m. matchup of former Sea View League rivals Tustin and Woodbridge. Tustin, behind senior point guard Doug Gottlieb and junior center David Lalazarian, lost to Compton Dominguez in the final of the Southern Section Division II-A playoffs last season. The Warriors were led to the Division II-AA semifinals by 6-foot-9 sophomore center Chris Burgess.

Friday’s second game at 7:30 p.m. features Dominguez against Fredrick (Md.) St. John’s at Prospect Hall, ranked second in the nation in the final USA Today poll. Dominguez was ranked 19th. Friday’s 9 p.m. game is between Crenshaw, the City Section 4-A champion, and Oak Hill, the nation’s sixth-ranked team last year.

The teams participating in Saturday’s 6 p.m. game are Santa Margarita, which reached the Division II-A semifinals behind the play of 6-8 junior center Allen Krist, and tentatively Long Beach Millikan, according to event co-director Phil Gatton. The teams are on each other’s early season schedules.

Saturday’s 7:30 p.m. game features Prospect Hall against Lakewood Artesia, the Division III-AA champions.

Tickets will be available at each school and the Bren Center box office. Admission will be $8 each day.