If you are a high school basketball fan looking for a very early preview of UIL and TAPPS playoff qualifiers, you need look no farther than the Jack Frost Tournament scheduled for Thursday through Saturday, Nov. 30-Dec. 2, in Georgetown.
Based on the predictions of Dave Campbell’s Texas Basketball Magazine, now on newsstands, 21 of the 34 UIL and TAPPS schools in the 36-team field are ticketed for postseason play. The other two JFT teams are home school squads.
Of those playoff worthies, 10 are predicted to win district titles — nine in the 16-team girls division and one on the boys side. Four other girls teams are expected to make the playoffs and seven other boys teams are predicted to advance in their classifications.
Girls entrants forecast as probable district winners are Georgetown (19-5A), defending state and tournament champion Argylre (9-4A), state semifinalist and JFK runner-up Liberty Hill (19-4A), Austin Bowie (19-6A), San Antonio Veterans Memorial (27-4A), Amarillo Tascosa (2-6A), Fort Worth Trimble Tech (7-5A) and Houston Westbury Christian (TAPPS 7-5A).
Teams on the girls bracket also seen as playoff teams are Lubbock Coronado (fourth in 4-5A), Austin Vandegrift (third in 26-5A), San Antonio Incarnate Word (second in TAPPS 2-6A), and Cibolo Steele (second in 26-5A). Belton, Leander and San Marcos are the other teams in girls play.
Magnolia (29-5A) is the lone district favorite in the boys field, but Georgetown (third in 19-5A), Austin Lake Travis (second in 25-6A), College Station A&M Consolidated (third in 18-5A), San Antonio Stevens (fourth in 28-6A), Round Rock McNeil (fourth in 14-6A), Austin Vandegrift (third in 25-6A) and Belton (third in 8-6A) are picked to reach the playoffs.
Rounding out the boys field are San Antonio Churchill, Trophy Club Byron Nelson, Leander, Spring Christian HomeSchool Sports Ministry, Round Rock Westwood, Kyle Lehman, Abilene and College Station Aggieland Home School.
Lake Travis, listed 10th in this season’s Texas Association of Basketball Coached rankings, returns as the tournament runner-up. Last year’s champion Spring Westfield is not returning this season.
The tournament also will showcase several individuals spotlighted by top preseason performers listing in Dave Campbell’s Texas Basketball Magazine. The selections are:
Boys: David Nzakwezi, sr., 6-8, Byton Nelson; Luke Hamilton, sr., 6-7, Lake Travis; Garrett Wilson, jr., 6-2, Lake Travis; Daniel Thorpe, jr., 6-7, Lake Travis.
Girls: Sedona Prince, sr., 6-7, Liberty Hill; Desi Caldwell, sr., 5-6, Cibolo Steele; Sophie Ramos, sr., 5-9, Incarnate Word; Gabby Sandifer, sr., 6-1, Argyle; K’Lia Smith, sr., 6-2, Tascosa; Hailey Atwood, jr., 5-7, Bowie.
The tournament format calls for pool play on Thursday and Friday and bracket play on Saturday. On Thursday, the girls will play two rounds of pool action and the boys one. The process will be reversed on Friday.
The gold bracket title games on Saturday are set for early evening with the girls playing at 5 p.m. and the boys at 6:30 p.m..
Primary gyms for the tournament with be Eagle Gym on the Georgetown High School campus, the GHS Auxiliary Gym and Southwestern University’s Robertson Center. Four boys games on Friday afternoon will be played at Georgetown’s East View High School.
A complete look at the girls and boys divisions of the Jack Frost Tournament:
JACK FROST INVITATIONAL
Nov. 30, Dec. 1-2, Georgetown
GIRLS DIVISION
Locations: Eagle Gym (A), GHS Auxiliary Gym (B , Southwestern’s Robertson Center (C).
Pool Assignments
A: Georgetown, Houston Westbury Christian, Leander, San Marcos.
B: Argyle, Fort Worth Trimble Tech, San Antonio Incarnate Word, Austin Bowie,
C: Liberty Hill, San Antonio Veterans Memorial, Lubbock Coronado, Belton.
D: Cibolo Steele, Amarillo Tascosa, Austin Vandegrift, Killeen.
POOL PLAY SCHEDULE
Thursday
9 a.m. — Steele vs. Tascosa (A); Vandegrift vs. Killeen (B), Coronado vs. Belton (C).
10:30 a.m. — Veteran’s Memorial vs. Liberty Hill (A), Westbury Christian vs. Leander (B), Incarnate Word vs. Bowie (C).
Noon — Georgetown vs. San Marcios (A), Argyle vs. Trimble Tech (B).
3 p.m. — Tascosa vs. Vandegrift (C).
4:30 p.m. — Bowie vs. Argyle (A), Killeen vs. Steele (C).
6 p.m. — Georgetown vs. Leander (A), Liberty Hill vs. Cotronado (B), Trimble Tech vs. Incarnate Word (C).
7:30 p.m. — San Marcos vs. Westbury Christian (B), Belton vs. Veteran’s Memorial (C).
Friday
Noon — Leander vs. San Marcos (C).
1:30 p.m. — Steele vs. Vandegrift (A), Killeen vs. Tascosa (B), Trimble Tech vs. Bowie (C).
3 p.m. — Veterans Memorial vs. Coronado (A), Argyle vs. Incarnate Word (B).
4:30 p.m. — Liberty Hill vs. Belton (B).
7:30 p.m. — Georgetown vs. Westbury Christian (A).
BRACKET PLAY SCHEDULE
Saturday
8 a.m. — Bronze Pool C3 vs. Pool D3 (A), Bronze Pool A3 vs. Pool B3 (B).
9:30 a.m. — Silver Pool B2 vs. Pool A2 (A), Silver Pool C2 vs. pool D2 (B).
11 a.m. — Friends Pool C4 vs. Pool D4 (C).
12:30 p.m. — Gold Pool B1 vs. Pool A1 (A), Gold Pool C1 vs. Pool D1 (B), Friends Pool A4 vs. Pool B4 (C).
3:30 p.m. — Silver finals, winners of 9:30 a.m. games (B).
5 p.m. — Gold finals, winners 12:30 p.m. gold games (A), Bronze finals, winners of 8 a.m. games (B).
BOYS DIVISION
Locations: Eagle Gym (A), GHS Auxiliary Gym (B), Southwestern’s Robertson Center (C), East View Main Gym (D), East View Auxiliary Gym (E).
Pool Assignments
A: Georgetown, Leander, Abilene, Spring Christian HomeSchool Sports Ministries.
B: San Antonio Churchill, Kyle Lehman, College Station Aggieland Home School, Trophy Club Byron Nelson.
C: Austin Vandegrift, Round Rock McNeil, Belton, Magnolia.
D: Austin Lake Travis, Round Rock Westwood, San Antonio Stevens, College Station A&M Consolidated.
POOL PLAY SCHEDULE
Thursday
Noon — Belton vs. Magnolia (C).
1:30 p.m. — Churchill vs. Lehman (A), Vandegrift vs. McNeil (B), Stevens vs. A&M Consolidated (C).
3 p.m. — Lake Travis vs. Westwood (A), Abilene vs. CHSM (B).
4:30 p.m. — Aggieland vs. Byron Nelson (B).
7:30 p.m. — Georgetown vs. Leander (A).
Friday
9 a.m. — Leander vs. Abilene (A), Churchill vs. Aggieland (B), Westwood vs. A&M Consolidate (C).
10:30 a.m. — Georgetown vs. CHSM (A), Vandegrift vs. Belton (B), McNeil vs. Magnolia (C).
Noon — Stevens vs. Lake Travis (A), Byron Nelson vs. Lehman (B).
4:30 p.m. — Magnolia vs. Vandegrift (A), Churchill vs. Byron Nelson (D), Belton vs. McNeil (E).
6 p.m. — Georgetown vs. Abilene (A), Lehaman vs. Aggieland (B), Lake Travis vs. A&M Consolidated (D), CHSM vs. Leander (E).
7:30 p.m. — Stevens vs. Westwood (B).
BRACKET PLAY SCHEDULE
Saturday
8 a.m. — Bronze Pool C3 vs. D3 (C).
9:30 a.m. — Bronze Pool A3 vs. B3 (C).
11 a.m. — Silver Pool A2 vs. B2 (A), Silver Pool C2 vs. D2 (B).
2 p.m. — Gold Pool A1 vs. B1 (A), Gold Pool C1 vs. D1 (B), Friends Pool C4 vs. D4 (C).
3:30 p.m. — Bronze finals, winners of 8 and 9:30 a.m. games (A), Friends Pool S4 vs. B4 (C).
6:30 p.m. — Gold finals, weinners of 2 p.m. games (A), Silver finals, winners of 11 a.m. gsmes (B).