Resource KT
Related Articles
KINGSPORT – Holiday basketball returns to Model City at Buck Van Huss Dome with the 2021 Alpha Invitational slated for Monday and Tuesday.
The two-day showcase will pit four teams from the region against four teams from the Southeast region with four competitions played each day.
It’s a bit similar to the Christmas Classic held at the Dome in the 1970s and early 1980s which drew players such as Darrell Griffith of Louisville Male in 1975 and Anthony Roberts of Chattanooga Riverside in 1972. Both pursued long careers in the NBA.
Dobyns-Bennett head coach Chris Poore heard about the tradition of Christmas Classic and other showcase events hosted by DB years ago, including a weekend that saw the Indians take on Princeton (W.Va.) with future Virginia star Jimmy Miller and Louisville Moore and future Louisville star Manuel Forrest on back-to-back parties.
“One of the first things I heard about Dobyns-Bennett basketball when I got here was about these kind of events that we had here,” said Poore. “We’re hoping to turn this event into something like this, something that we can host every year that will attract some of the best high school basketball players in the country.”
Alpha Metallurgical Resources has signed up to sponsor the tournament.
“We were fortunate to have such an amazing sponsor to pave the way for this event,” commented Poore. “You can tell through their engagement that they believe impact and change is happening at the local level and that they have been exceptional to work with. “
The Bank of Tennessee will serve as the media room sponsor while Elite Manufacturing Services will be the corporate sponsor.
“We certainly couldn’t have done something close to what we do without these great sponsors, and we look forward to seeing where this tournament goes in the future with their help,” noted Poore.
Teams outside of the Alpha Invitational include AC Reynolds (North Carolina), South Atlanta (Georgia), Chapmanville (West Virginia) and Lexington (South Carolina).
The local teams participating in the event on both days are Greeneville, Morristown East and host DB. Daniel Boone will participate Monday with Clinton on the field Tuesday.
The schedule begins with Greeneville taking on Lexington at 3:30 p.m. Monday, followed by Morristown East taking on Chapmanville at 5 a.m., Daniel Boone v AC Reynolds at 6:30 p.m. and DB v South Atlanta at 8 p.m.
Day two begins with Clinton v South Atlanta at 3:30 p.m. and is followed by Morristown East v AC Reynolds at 5 a.m., Greeneville v Chapmanville at 6.30 a.m. and DB closes the event with a game against Lexington.
Admission to the Alpha Invitational is $ 10 per day and will be restricted to walk-in sales.
