The 18th annual Midwest Showdown Shootout featured some of the best high school basketball teams in the St. Louis area matched up against some quality teams from outside of the state.
Thanks to event director Terrell Ramey of Ramey Basketball, area basketball fans were treated to a full day of basketball which is also a good precursor to the multitude of holiday tournaments coming up in the next week.
It was a very good day for St. Louis area teams who won six of the seven games during the event. The most exciting games of the Shootout came during the final two contests of the night. In the featured contest, Kankakee defeated Vashon 60-53 in a battle of top teams from St. Louis and the Chicago area. In the finale, Cardinal Ritter College Prep defeated Nicolet High from the Milwaukee area 65-62 in a game that went down to the final possession. Junior guard Aiden Stevenson scored 20 points to lead the Lions to the victory over one of the top teams in the state of Wisconsin.
One of the top individual performers in the event was senior Jamison White of East St. Louis. The 6’8” forward scored a game-high 28 points to lead the Flyers to a 78-52 victory over 21st Century from Gary, Indiana. White, a Penn State recruit, dominated the game with low post scoring, slam dunks, 3-point shots and blocks on defense.
In another St. Louis vs. Chicago matchup, DeSmet defeated Chicago Mt. Carmel 77-48 with a very convincing performance. The Spartans were led by 6’4” senior Northern Iowa recruit Jordan Boyd, who scored a game-high 22 points.
St. Mary’s continued its strong early-season play with a 74-61 victory over Springfield Sacred-Heart Griffin. Junior guard Xavier Clark earned Player of the Game honors by scoring 17 points. CBC had a big victory over Memphis Business Academy 79-47 as junior guard Kyron Jackson scored 25 points. In the opening game of the day, St. Louis University High defeated Breese Mater Dei 61-54 behind 25 points from junior guard John Hawkins.
Congratulations to Terrell Ramey and his staff for putting on another great basketball event for the city.
Holiday Tournament Preview
For the next week, the St. Louis area will be inundated with holiday basketball tournaments on both sides of the river. Here is a look at some of the tournament action coming up.
Visitation Christmas Tournament (Girls)
The top girls tournament in the state resumes on Friday with four second-round games. The four games will be Lift for Life vs. Cardinal Ritter at 3:30 p.m., Incarnate Word vs. St. Joseph’s at 5 p.m., Belleville East vs. Cor Jesu at 6:30 p.m. and Principia vs. Ursuline Academy at 8 p.m.
The semifinals will be held on Saturday at 6:30 and 8 p.m. The championship game will be held on Sunday at 7 p.m.
Coaches vs. Cancer (Boys)
The 16-team boys tournament will be held at Maryville University from December 27-30.
Defending tournament champion DeSmet received the No. 1 seed. The Spartans are followed by Vianney, Lindbergh and Marquette. The semifinals will be held on Monday evening with the championship game set for Tuesday, December 30 at 7:30 p.m.
MICDS (Boys and Girls)
The Don Maurer Holiday Invitational at MICDS features a 16-team boys tournament and an eight-team girls field. Both boys and girls teams for host MICDS received the No. 1 seed for their respective tournaments.
On the boys side, the host Rams are followed by CBC, Hazelwood East, Edwardsville and Clayton. The semifinals will be held on Monday night with the championship game set for Tuesday, December 30 at 7:30 p.m.
The MICDS girls are followed in the seedings by Lafayette, Fort Zumwalt West and Clayton. The tournament begins on Friday with first-round games. The semifinals will be held on Saturday with the championship game set for Tuesday, December 30 at 6 p.m.
St. Dominic (Boys and Girls)
The St. Dominic Tournament features both boys and girls fields of eight teams each. The No. 1 seed in the boys tournament is Southeast Missouri power Sikeston, followed by host St. Dominic, Francis Howell Central, Wentzville Holt and Lift for Life. The championship game is set for Tuesday, December 30 at 6 p.m.
On the girls side, St. Charles West received the No. 1 seed, followed by St. Dominic, Whitfield and North Point. The championship game is set for Tuesday, December 30 at 4:30 p.m.