Overview

MaxPreps.com, the online high school sports leader and a CBSSports.com site, is proud to announce the 10th Annual MaxPreps Holiday Classic in Palm Springs, CA. Taking place December 26-29, 2012, the tournament formerly known as the Desert Heat Classic annually draws some of the very best High School Basketball teams throughout the United States.

The 2012 host of the MaxPreps Holiday Classic is Desert Christian Academy High School. This year’s tournament will include a 16 team Invitational Bracket. In addition, we will have six 8 team, Pool Play Boy’s Varsity Divisions. We will also have a Boys Junior Varsity Tournament which will be a 16 team bracket tournament. In 2012 the MaxPreps Holiday Classic will add two 8 team, Pool Play Girls Varsity divisions, all games will be played in the beautiful Coachella Valley.

With weather traditionally in the 70′s during the holiday season, the Palm Springs area is a popular destination for all ages. While there are many choices for High School teams to travel to during the holiday season, the MaxPreps Holiday Classic in Palm Springs, CA is destined to become one of the elite National High School Holiday Basketball tournaments in the United States.

Gymnasium venues for this year’s tournament include; Cathedral City High School, Desert Christian Academy High School, Palm Springs High School, Marywood Palm Valley High School and College of the Desert. The tournament has been held yearly since 2002. Past tournament participants have included: Mater Dei, Lincoln NY, De La Salle, Oceanside El Camino, Harvard Westlake, Crespi, Mercer Island, Loyola, Edison, Capistrano Valley, Mission Viejo, Dana Hills, Etiwanda, American Fork, Pleasant Grove, Moorpark, Brawley, Torrance, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Miller, Burbank, Capistrano Valley, Colton, Crenshaw, Crescenta Valley, Dana Hills, Desert Hot Springs, Dorsey, Edison, Lakeside, Patriot, Perris, Rancho Cucamonga, Santa Ana Valley, Simi Valley, Sultana, Thousand Oaks, Torrance, Twentynine Palms, Victor Valley, Viewpoint, Pleasant Grove, Ponderosa, Sierra Pacific, Pleasant Grove UT, Galena NV, Green Valley NV, Foothill NV, Silverado NV, Bishop Manogue NV, and Skyline WA, in addition to many other successful basketball programs.

The Bracket Tournment format includes (4) days of staight bracket play, with winners moving to the right of bracket, and losers moving to the left of bracket. The Pool Play Divisions format includes (3) days of pool play competition with eight teams in each division competing against similar level teams, and (1) Championship Day, with every team in the tournament competing for either 1st, 3rd, 5th or 7th place in their respective divisions.

The 2012 MaxPreps Holiday Classic is projected to be one to the top 10 tournaments in the nation.