USA Today announces pre-season All-USA boys’ basketball team
Another outstanding week of high school hoops is in store for the 45th Annual Culligan City of Palms Classic scheduled for Monday, Dec. 18 – Saturday, Dec. 23 at the Suncoast Credit Union Arena on the Fort Myers campus of Florida SouthWestern State College.
USA Today recently revealed the American Family Insurance All-USA preseason boys’ basketball team, and three of the top players on the team will be taking to the hardwood in Fort Myers, including the only junior on the team, Vernon Carey, Jr. from University School in Fort Lauderdale.
Carey, a 6’ 9” center, comes into this season having averaged 22 points and eight rebounds per game during his sophomore campaign. Carey also led the USA Men’s U16 National Team that captured the gold medal last summer with a perfect 5-0 record at the FIBA U16 Americas Championship. Carey was named MVP of the tournament.
Moses Brown, another big man at 6’ 11”, is on the All-USA team and will lead his Archbishop Molloy (Queens, N.Y.) team to Southwest Florida for the first time. Brown averaged 20 points and 14 rebounds last season and is being recruited by several schools including: Kentucky, Maryland, UCLA and FSU.
Perennial national powerhouse Hudson Catholic (Jersey City, N.J.) is led by All-USA team player Jahvon Quinerly, a 6’ 1” point guard who was first team all-state in 2016-17. Quinerly lead the Hawks with 20 points, three rebounds and five assists last season.
Tickets for the tournament are now on sale. Several ticket options are available, including:
1. Six-Day Preferred Ticket Package: A single-seat six-day ticket package for $250 plus a $10 processing fee with seating in the first two rows directly behind the team benches and
scorer’s table (west side of the arena) or the opposite first and second rows (east side).
2. Six-Day Reserved Ticket Package: A single-seat six-day ticket package for $128 plus a $10 processing fee for the remaining seating (east and west sides of the arena).
3. General Admission: Single-day General Admission is available for $15 per day (Friday and Saturday tickets are $20 per day). These prices include the processing fee.
4. Reserved Seat: Single-day reserved seat in Section II is available for $25 per day (Friday and Saturday tickets are $30 per day). These prices include the processing fee.
5. VIP Parking: A six-day Reserved Parking Pass is available for $60 plus a $5 processing fee.
For tickets, call the box office 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday at (800) 440-7469 or (239) 481-4849.
Culligan returns for its fifth year as Title Sponsor, and Enterprise Rent-A-Car is Presenting Sponsor for the fourth year.
No fees are collected from players or teams, and Classic Basketball Inc., a 501(c)3 not-for-profit corporation that acts as a foundation for the tournament, helps offset some of the costs incurred by the teams participating in the tournament. For many of the players, the tournament represents their first opportunity to travel outside their own community.
Since 1989, 146 Culligan City of Palms Classic players have been named McDonald’s All-Americans and 116 have been drafted by the NBA, including 71 first-round picks.
Visit cityofpalmsclassic.com for all the information on this not-for-profit tournament featuring the top-ranked players and teams, including visitor information, ticket sales, schedule, team information, history, sponsors and sponsorship opportunities, eNewsletter signup, a tournament bracket, scores and stats, information on how to lend financial support as a Friend of the Classic, and much more.
