Frank Burlison

LA VERNE, Ca – The fourth Classic at Damien (Dec. 26, 27, 28&30), to be held in the Damien High Athletic and Event Centers, as well as on several area campuses, will showcase some of the very best players the Class of 2020 has to offer.

And 10 of the athletes in the five-division, 80-team event signed National Letters of Intent with NCAA-designated programs last in November.

The programs for eight of those players will be competing in the Platinum Division, the toughest post-Christmas tournament division anywhere in the country.

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LAS VEGAS – The first day of the Tarkanian Classic, at Bishop Gorman High, ended with more than just a bit of optimism for the UCLA coaching staff and the Bruins’ followers.

Six-foot-five Daishen Nix, who signed a National Letter of Intent last month to enroll at Westwood in the summer, put all of his highly refined skill on display Tuesday night while scoring 39 points in Las Vegas Trinity International’s 71-57 victory over San Antonio-based Cornerstone Christian in a first-round game of the Pangos Elite 8 “prep school” team tournament.

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MEDIA/PHOTO-VIDEO CREDENTIALS FOR THE CLASSIC AT DAMIEN

   Individuals with CIF Southern Section (or other CIF sections) media or courtesy passes will gain admission to the Dec. 26-30 Classic games (assuming seating remains available during a given day or night) but no “league” or other organization-media “passes” will be accepted for free admission.

To request a “tournament credential” for access to one of the limited number of Classic at Damien “media seats” or court-side “photographer/videographer” spots, as well as access to the tournament interview room, contact Classic at Damien Media Director Melissa Mallari: melmallari3@gmail.com

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PASADENA, Ca. – The “host” teams won five of the six games played Saturday during the inaugural SoCal-Vegas Showdown, fronted by Gerry Freitas and held at Pasadena City College.

In an entertaining finale that was televised by KDOC, Rancho Christian of Temecula held on to edge Liberty, 74-67, despite a dazzling 44-point effort by Gonzaga-bound Julian Strawther.

He dropped all 22 of his squad’s points in the fourth quarter as it cut the Eagles’ advantage to five points with 1:03 remaining.

The 6-foot-6 Strawther then picked off a pass in the Rancho Christian backcourt and appeared to be fouled in the act of shooting with 54 seconds to go.

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PASADENA – Two of the best regions in the country for producing college – and NBA – hoops talent, without question, are the greater Southern California and Las Vegas areas.

So, do you want to see the proof in your basketball holiday pudding?

You’re in luck.

The first SoCal-Vegas Showdown will offer six matchups of teams from Southern California and Las Vegas on Saturday at Pasadena City College with some of the west’s best teams and players, from across the classes, on display.

Leading the field are the consensus No.

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