Frank Burlison

WESTMINSTER and LONG BEACH, Ca. – For those who are vested in knowing who the best of the high school basketball teams and players in Southern California are – you should have no problem identifying at least one of those – Sunday was quite the profitable day.

The day — for yours truly, at least – began late Sunday morning at Westminster High, where I watched parts of five games during the final day of the Compton Magic’s The League.

It wrapped up about eight hours later at McBride High in Long Beach, where I watched three quality matchups during the first-ever Pangos’ Lute Olson Legacy Classic.

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LONG BEACH – The Nothing But Net Magazine/Pangos “Diamond in the Rough Showcase”, held at McBride High Saturday, proved to be nice platform for a lot of Southern California-based boys’ hoopsters.

But a bit more than a couple of weeks before the “real” high school season tips off, a bunch of players who made hefty trips to get to Long Beach were nothing short of terrific.

And a couple of Class of 2024 members, via middle America, showed why they’re already a couple of well-polished gems.

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PHILADELPHIA – The last – and, possibly, the best – of the fall Pangos All-Regional Frosh/Soph Camps wrapped up Sunday afternoon with a couple of terrific all-star games Sunday afternoon in Kelly Fieldhouse on the campus of St. Joseph’s College Prep School.

And, not surprisingly (considering the significant hype each of the players brought with them to the All-East Camp), sophomore Meleek Thomas and freshman A.J. Dybantsa confirmed that– at least for the time being – they are a couple of cuts more advanced than the rest of the 230-plus players in attendance at the two-day event.

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PHILADELPHIA – What appears to be a deep, tall and gifted eastern-based Class of 2026 was on display, front and center, during Saturday’s first day of the annual Pangos All-East/Frosh-Soph Camp in the St. Joseph’s Prep Kelly Fieldhouse.

Nearly 240 freshmen (Class of 2026) and sophomores (2025) – with a few impressive eighth graders sprinkled in the mix – were spread over 24 camp teams that played twice apiece.

Camp action – with all games live-streamed and archived by BallerTV – resumes at 9 o’clock Sunday morning and concludes with a couple of afternoon all-star games.

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LA GRANGE, IL – It’s billed as the Pangos All-Midwest Frosh/Soph Camp.

And this version of the event, which wrapped up Sunday afternoon in the Park District Athletic Facility the Chicago suburb of La Grange, delivered the goods for the high school classes of 2025 and ’26.

And Indiana, Michigan and Wisconsin more than held up its end of the “Midwest” part of the equation.

Those teams combined to land 14 spots on the 30-player Crème of the Crop All-Star Game.

The Badger State’s five reps included the athlete who bagged the camp’s overall “Most Outstanding Player” tag, 6-foot-6 sophomore Xzavion Mitchell (North High in Oshkosh).

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