The basketball state playoffs won't begin for almost another three months, but participants in this week's Jammin' for Jackets Tournament at North Little Rock's arena are expecting a postseason-type atmosphere.
"It's bigger than a conference game," said Antonio Edwards, Little Rock Hall's 6-2 senior guard. "It just is."
JAMMIN’ FOR JACKETS
North Little Rock High School
TODAY’S GAMES
LR Parkview vs. Mills, 4 p.m.
Episcopal vs. LR Central, 5:30 p.m.
North Little Rock vs. LR Fair, 7 p.m.
LR Hall vs. LR McClellan, 8:30 p.m.
North Little Rock, Mills, Episcopal Collegiate and all five of the Little Rock School District high schools are entered in the 17th annual event that traditionally produces state champions.
North Little Rock (Class 7A) and Episcopal (3A) won state titles last season. Little Rock Parkview, the defending Jammin' for Jackets champion, finished as last season's Class 6A runner-up.
"I think this tournament is important for the entire [school] district, because over the years they've fragmented the district to where our opportunities to play each other are limited," McClellan Coach Chris Threatt said. "We've had so many changes in our conferences and classifications that, other than this time, we may not see each other until this time next year."
This week's tournament is viewed as an important springboard for later events.
"We get a lot from it," Hall Coach Jon Coleman said. "The way we try to structure our schedule is we try to play teams from different parts of the state. We just came from a tournament in Fayetteville where it's a little bit slower paced and a less-pressing type of basketball. For the next part of our schedule, we're going to be seeing teams who press a lot and get up and down the floor.
"That's how we measure how we'll perform the rest of the year."
The tournament is about bragging rights for players.
"You're playing against the best," said Andre Jones, McClellan's 6-4 junior forward who is coming off a 25-point, 14-rebound performance in Saturday's 72-43 victory over Memphis Westwood. "If you do well here, you're probably going to do well in conference."
"You want to see where your team is, and there's not a better tournament that's going to show you where you stand," Edwards said. "No matter where we finish, I think it's going to help us out in the long run."
First-round action begins today with Parkview playing Mills at 4 p.m. The championship game is scheduled to tip off at 5:30 p.m. Saturday.
Sports on 12/11/2014