PrimeTime Shootout preview

One of the nation's most highly anticipated high school events comes back to Trenton, NJ this weekend as the 27th annual Prime Time Shootout is set to kick-off. This four day event features no fewer than 16 nationally ranked teams among the 42 in attendance with over 150 Division I prospects. Rivals.com will be there to cover the action.

It all starts today with a four game set featuring mostly New Jersey teams at South Brunswick HS. Powerful St. Benedict's will take on Woodrow Wilson from Camden, NJ, and Blair Academy, Our Savior New American (NY), and Bloomfield Tech are also on the slate. Lance Thomas, Shamari Spears, and Casiem Drummond are just a few of the highly regarded players scheduled to compete.

On Friday, the action moves to the Sovereign Bank Arena in Trenton, NJ for another four games and the level of competition is raised a couple of notches. 7-foot-1 junior Brian Zoubek and his Haddonfield HS squad tip off the action against St. Peter's. Then the Hun School takes on south Jersey power St. Augustine. The evening ends with a couple of dandies as the USA Today's 7th ranked Oak Hill Academy takes on #21 St. Patrick's (NJ) and #9 St. Anthony's faces #10 DeMatha.

The Oak Hill vs. St. Patrick's game will be televised live on ESPN2. It features several nationally ranked players including Oak Hill seniors Eric Devendorf, Jamont Gordon, KC Rivers, and some of the nation's elite underclassmen like St. Patrick's #6 rated Derrick Caracter and Oak Hill's #16 Kevin Durant and #19 Tywon Lawson. In all, there will be over 40 Division I prospects competing in just 4 games on Friday!

Saturday doesn't let up, as nearly every game features elite teams and/or players. Rice takes a 17-2 record into their game with Raritan 15-2. Rice has lost both of their games to #5 Christ the King, and Raritan has lost to only #9 St. Anthony and #21 St. Patrick's. Rice's Curtis Kelly is out to prove that he is among the very best in the Class of 2006.

Duke signee Greg Paulus leads Christian Brothers Academy vs. defending state champ Mt. Vernon (NY). 6-foot-7 junior PF Jon Mitchell is coming into his own, having scored 32 and 33 points in his last two games. Rufus King from Milwaukee, WI has good size and one of the nation's best freshmen in 5-11 PG Korie Lucious. They will face an exceptionally tall and talented group of international players from Montverde Academy in Florida.

In the headliner on Saturday USA Today's #1 ranked Vashon (MO) puts their gaudy 20-0 record on the line against #11 Niagara Falls, who are also undefeated at 19-0. Niagara Falls' 6-foot-5 junior forward Paul Harris has firmly established himself as one of the toughest players to guard in the junior class.

14th ranked Westchester (CA) with a pair of future Big East players in #18 Amir Johnson and #52 Marcus Johnson then takes on New York City parochial power Xaverian and their explosive Pittsburgh bound point guard Levance Fields. The day ends with another outstanding contest as Episcopal Academy (PA), with a 20-2 record and two of the nations top junior wing players in Wayne Ellington and Gerald Henderson, faces a loaded 19-3 Montrose Christian (MD) squad led by unsigned 6-foot-9 PF Uche Echefu.

Sunday is another superb day with Oak Hill and St. Patrick's back in action along with 5th ranked Christ the King, Germantown Academy (PA), Bishop O'Connell (VA), Cardozo (NY), and St. Vincent-St. Mary (OH). Among the featured performers on Sunday will be 7-foot Connecticut signee Andrew Bynum, 6-foot-5 North Carolina bound Marcus Ginyard, and 6-foot-7 Notre Dame signee Ryan Ayers.

Rivals.com will provide full coverage of this event on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

Full Schedule

South Brunswick High School - South Brunswick, NJ

Thursday, February 10, 2005

4:30 - Woodrow Wilson High School (Camden, NJ) vs. St. Benedict's (Newark, NJ)

6:00 - Colonia, NJ vs. Blair Academy (Blairstown, NJ)

7:30 - Franklin Twp, NJ vs. Our Savior New American (Centereach, NY)

9:00 - South Brunswick, NJ vs. Bloomfield Tech, NJ

Sovereign Bank Arena - Trenton, NJ

Friday, February 11, 2005

3:45 - Haddonfield High School (NJ) vs. St. Peters (New Brunswick, NJ)

5:15 - Hun School (Princeton, NJ) vs. St. Augustine (Richland, NJ)

7:30 - Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, VA) vs. St. Patrick's (Elizabeth, NJ)

9:00 - St. Anthony's (Jersey City. NJ) vs. DeMatha (Hyattsville, MD)

Sovereign Bank Arena - Trenton, NJ

Saturday, February 12, 2005

10:30 - Middle Twp. (Cape May, NJ) vs. Schalick (Pittsgrove, NJ)

12:00 - Notre Dame Girls (Lawrenceville, NJ) vs. Trenton Central Girls (NJ)

1:30 - Rice (NYC) vs. Raritan, NJ

3:00 - Christian Brothers Academy (Syracuse. NY) vs. Mt. Vernon, NY

4:30 - Rufus King (Milwaukee, WI) vs. Montverde, FL

6:00 - Vashon High (St. Louis, Missouri) vs. Niagara Falls, NY

7:30 - Westchester (Los Angeles, CA) vs. Xaverian (Brooklyn, NY)

9:00 - Episcopal Academy (Philadelphia, PA) vs. Montrose Christian (Rockville, MD)

Sovereign Bank Arena - Trenton, NJ

Sunday, February 13, 2005

10:30 - Cranford (NJ) vs. Lawrenceville School (Lawrenceville, NJ)

12:00 - McCorristin (Trenton, NJ) vs. Christ The King (Queens, NY)

1:30 - Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, VA) vs. St. Vincent-St. Mary (Akron, OH)

3:00 - St. Patrick's (Elizabeth, NJ) vs. Cardozo (Queens, NY)

4:30 - Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, VA) vs. Germantown Academy (Ft. Washington, PA)

6:00 - St. Joseph's (Metuchen, NJ) vs. Rochester East (Rochester, NY)

7:30 - Frederick Douglas Academy (NYC) vs. McQuaid Jesuit (Rochester, NY)