Frank Burlison

LAS VEGAS – A year after three Las Vegas (or thereabouts)-based teams played in the semifinals of the Tarkanian Classic’s Platinum Division, only one advanced to the quarterfinals Monday in the Orleans Hotel Arena in the 11^th edition of one of the nation’s finest boys high school basketball events.

Durango, 58-55 to Santa Ana (CA) Mater Dei; Liberty, 69-68 to Marietta (GA) Kell; and Coronado, 60-57 to Cleveland St. Ignatius each moved left on the 16-team bracket with action resuming Tuesday morning – and continuing thru Thursday’s final games – at Bishop Gorman High.

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LAS VEGAS – Five unbeaten teams, three of those from Southern California, are among the 16 squads set to tip off Monday morning (10 PT) at the Orleans Hotel Arena in the first day of the Platinum bracket in the high school division of the 11^th Tarkanian Classic.

It’s most compelling “true high school teams”-event of its kind, nationally, prior to Christmas.

The event is hosted by Bishop Gorman High, where the Platinum games will be played the remainder of the week concluding with the Thursday evening title game set to tip at 6 o’clock.

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LAS VEGAS – Jahseem Felton scored all 11 of his points in the second half – including 3s that for the tying and winning points – to help third-year program Southern California Academy knock off a tall, deep, and gifted NBA Academy Global squad Saturday night at Bishop Gorman High, 48-45.

The game was part of the second day of the National Prep School competition of the 11^th Tarkanian Classic.

The 6-foot-5 Felton (pictured) – who scored his final nine points on 3s – tied the score at 45 with 1:52 remaining following a pass from 6-6 A.J.

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LAS VEGAS – The “press school competition” of the 11t^h Tarkanian Classic tipped off Friday afternoon at the event’s host, Bishop Gorman High.

Among the squads competing this weekend (the “prep school” comp ends Sunday afternoon; with the traditional “high school” action running Monday-Thursday) are NBA Academy squads “Global” (Australia and New Zealand), “Latin America” and “Africa”.

And the Global club was the most impressive of the bunch Friday night, toppling Glendale (AZ) Dream City Christian, 69-61, in front of a lot of college coaches and lot of scouts representing all the NBA franchises.

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LAGUNA NIGUEL, Ca. – Four weeks into the boys’ basketball season, Southern California’s pre-season “Best of the Best” teams – Centennial, Harvard-Westlake, and Bishop Montgomery – have looked every bit locked in as the state’s best three teams.

They’re a combined 24-1, with that loss the one Centennial suffered in Texas on the home-court of the top-ranked “non-prep school” team in the country, Duncanville, 59-57, on Nov. 26.

Centennial and the Wolverines have also played reasonably challenging schedules so far.

That hasn’t been the case for Bishop Montgomery but should change when Doug Mitchell’s squad heads to San Luis Obispo for the Mission Prep Christmas Classic, whose field will also include the likes of St.

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