Slam Dunk to the Beach announces 2016 teams

Five of the top 25 boys’ high school basketball teams in the country will put on a show on the court at Slam Dunk to the Beach 2016. The tournament will also feature an international team for the first time.

The showcase will be at Cape Henlopen High School Dec. 27-29. Teams attending that are ranked on the USA Today Super 25 Preseason Boys Basketball rankings include:

• No. 10 Patrick School (Elizabeth, N.J.) 

• No. 11 Westtown (West Chester, Pa.)

• No. 16 Gray Collegiate (Columbia, S.C.)

• No. 17 St. Benedict’s Prep (Newark, N.J.)

• No. 25 Neumann-Goretti (Philadelphia, Pa.) 

“We are excited about the quality of the teams and players for this year’s edition of Slam Dunk,” said Dr. Matthew Robinson, chairman of the Delaware Sports Commission. “Not only is this a first-class event and one of the best high school basketball tournaments in America, it is also a major economic driver for southern Delaware during the tourism off-season – creating an impact of $2 million and bringing in more than 20,000 visitors over the past two years.”

Tickets are on sale now at www.slamdunktothebeach.com. A three-day pass is available at a discounted rate of $50 through the end of November.

A total of 20 elite teams will make this year’s Slam Dunk field the revamped tournament’s largest and best yet. Other non-Delaware teams competing include:

• St. Michael’s (Toronto, Ontario)

• Sagemont (Weston, Fla.)

• Paul VI (Fairfax, Va.)

• Bishop Loughlin (Brooklyn, N.Y.)

• Our Savior New American (Centereach, N.Y.)

• St. Raymond (Bronx, N.Y.)

• Roselle Catholic (Roselle, N.J.)

• Bishop McNamara (Forestville, Md.)

• Baltimore Poly (Baltimore, Md.)

• Eleanor Roosevelt (Greenbelt, Md.)

• Archbishop Wood (Warminster, Pa.)

In March, DSC announced the Delaware teams playing at Slam Dunk would be Cape Henlopen, Mount Pleasant, Sanford and Smyrna. 

“Slam Dunk to the Beach is one of the best events Westtown plays in all year,” said Seth Berger, Westtown head coach. “The gym is beautiful, it's run like a professional event, and the competition is great. We are really thankful to be invited.”

The iconic tournament has hosted many future NBA and college superstars over the years, including LeBron James (2001), Kevin Durant (2003), Dwight Howard (2003) and Carmelo Anthony (2000). The 2016 event will once again have numerous participants from ESPN's top rated players from each graduating class. Mohamed Bamba (Westtown), Jalek Felton (Gray Collegiate), Quade Green (Neumann-Goretti), Brandon Randolph (Westtown), Nick Richards (Patrick School), and Isaiah Washington (St. Raymond) are all listed on the ESPN100 rankings for high school seniors. 

Bamba, making a return visit to Slam Dunk to the Beach, is rated as second best center in the country and fourth best player overall by ESPN. Green, a former Slam Dunk to the Beach All-Tournament Team selection, is listed as ESPN’s third rated Point Guard in the nation, and Richards is listed as the fifth rated center in his class. All three have yet to commit to colleges, but Felton, Randolph and Washington will be playing their collegiate hoops at North Carolina (ACC), Arizona (Pac 12) and Minnesota (Big 10), respectively.   

Several underclassmen are ranked by ESPN, as well, and leading the Slam Dunk group are Cameron Reddish (Westtown) and Nazreon Reid (Roselle Catholic). Reddish is listed as the top small forward in the junior class, making Westtown the only school in the country with two players ranked in the top five of their class. Reid returns to Lewes, DE as the sixth ranked power forward in the ESPN60 list. 

Brandon Slater (Paul VI) and Juwan Gray (Gray Collegiate) finish off the outstanding group of ESPN ranked players who will be participating at the Slam Dunk to the Beach event in December. Slater ranks as the 10th best small forward in the junior class, while Gray makes the coveted ESPN25 listing of the nation’s best sophomores as the #5 small forward in the class of 2019.

Also Wednesday DSC also announced the matchups for the 2016 Slam Dunk, which breaks down into day and night sessions. Each day has a pair of exciting three-game blocks. The full schedule, with start times for all 18 games, can be found at http://slamdunktothebeach.com/.

For more information on the tournament, follow @SlamDunkToBeach on Twitter and Facebook at Slam Dunk To The Beach.