Super Saturday in Richmond
Super Bowl weekend in the Richmond area will have a little more flair to it this year with the creation of the inaugural "Super Saturday Slamfest" on February 2nd.
The "Slamfest" is a basketall showcase of some of the state of Virginia’s premiere high school talent and teams coming together for an exciting day of fun-filled basketball. The event will feature 10 high school teams competing in two venues conveniently located in Richmond’s west end.
Advertisement
The Robins Center on the campus of the University of Richmond will serve as the host site for Session #1 featuring Varina against Blue Ridge at 1:00, followed by a 3:00 match-up of Salem (Virginia Beach) and Cave Spring (Roanoke).
Douglas S. Freeman will serve as host site for Session #2 and the final 3 games of the day featuring: Roanoke Catholic against Patrick Henry (5:15), Nansemond-River versus Highland Springs (7:00), and finally Floyd E. Kellam (Virginia Beach) against Douglas S. Freeman in the night cap.
The day’s highlight pairs two of the state’s most prolific players John Gilchrist of Salem (Virginia Beach) and JJ Redick of Cave Spring (Roanoke) in a showdown of what might possibly be Group AAA’s state championship. John Gilchrist will attend the University of Maryland later this fall, while McDonald’s All-American candidate Redick is prepared to take his game to Durham to play for Duke University.
Although the match-up between Salem and Cave Spring is the highlight of the event, the excitement of the "Super Saturday Slamfest" will not end there with intriguing match-ups of some of the state’s premiere talent and teams. The Varina Blue Devils led by Virginia Tech bound Markus Sailes put the private school’s most elite team to the test in the first game of Session #1. Two time defending Division 1 state chmapion Blue Ridge is led by 6’10 center Aliou Kane, who has signed a letter of intent to the University of Minnesota.
In the 2nd session, two-time Division 2 state champion Roanoke Catholic puts their reputation on the line with an up and coming Patrick Henry team from Ashland, Va.. Celtic junior guard JR Reynolds has given Pete Gillen a commitment to attend the University of Virginia following his senior season, and his team has been said by many to be one of the premiere teams in the state.
The final two games of the evening feature, the surprise of the Tidewater area, Nansemond-River and Highland-Springs. Nansemond-River perhaps boasts the Slamfest’s best player with their sophomore sensation Marquie Cooke, while Highland-Springs counters with sharp shooting sensation Andre Ingram. The Springers/Warriors match-up could very well be the best game of the day, and perhaps see the most fanfare with Cooke potentially being one of the state’s best players in recent memory.
The day concludes with a potential Eastern Region contender Floyd E. Kellam squaring off against a home-standing Douglas S. Freeman Rebels squad, led by head coach Larry Parfaret.
Omni Sports Group of Ashland, Va. in conjunction with Intense Interactive has created one of the elite high school basketball event websites in the country to provide a thorough account of every aspect of the event. The site can be found at www.omnisportsgroup.com, it is filled with player profile features, team features, and any other pertinent information related to the event. Tickets for the event are $8 for adults and $6 for students; tickets will be on sale on site at each venue the day of the games.
In other news, Omni Sports Group will move the Commonwealth Classic All-Star Game between the Eastern Region and Tidewater to Saturday March 23, 2002. A venue will be announced very soon. A selection committee of coaches and media from the Central and Eastern region’s public and private high schools will select the team.
Contact Information: Omni Sports Group, LLC
Thomas Leachman
Omni Sports Group, LLC
116 N. Center St.
Event Director
Ashland, Va. 23005
804.752.0020
Michael Feibelman
Omni Sports Group, LLC
Director of Marketing
804.288.3088
Cellular 804.833.3088