In a wide-open Platinum Division, the bracket's top-ranked team, Bishop O'Connell (Arlington, Va.), went down in the first round to Las Vegas' best team, Arbor View, 52-50. Two of three local Vegas teams advance as does FAB 50 ranked Alta (Sandy, Utah).

The prevailing thinking coming into the 11th annual Tarkanian Classic was the event's main draw, the Platinum Division bracket, was a wide-open affair. As many as 10 or perhaps 12 teams had to feel they had a chance to win the bracket coming in and on queue, there was an upset by the second game of the top division. Arbor View (Las Vegas, Nev.) took on Bishop O'Conell (Arlington, Va.) and competed valiantly with a team that came in as the highest ranked club in the latest FAB 50 National Team Rankings and was the de facto top seed. The Aggies kept in range and then made enough key plays at the end to pull out the 52-50 victory.

Arbor View (5-2) held a one point lead (51-50) after O'Connell's Bryson Tucker hit a 12-foot baseline jumper with 40 seconds remaining. O'Connell (5-2) didn't score on its next offensive opportunity and waited until 7.2 seconds remaining to foul Arbor View's Maxiumus Romero. He made one free throw, then the Knights got a break when there was an Arbor View lane violation on the second attempt. Tucker then took it the length of the floor for a slashing lay-up and the ball rolled around the rim...and rolled off. The extra toilet bowl roll prevented any potential tip-in as Arbor View advanced to play St. Augustine (San Diego, Calif.) in Tuesday's second round.

Arbor View had four players in double figures with San Diego St.-bound forward Pharoah Compton, arguably Nevada's top senior and 6-foot-3 2024 guard DeMarion Yap each netting 13 points. Yap, the younger brother of Fresno St. guard Donovan Yap, hit two big 3-pointers late to aid in the upset bid.

Bishop O'Connell, which was coming off a one-point loss to Brewster Academy (Wolfeboro, N.H.), was hurt by the absence of sophomore guard Quincy Wadley, a terrific national Top 25 prospect in the 2026 class who is back in the D.M.V. getting a leg injury diagnosed. His absence was felt against a team that is hoping to give the local fans a team to get behind other than host Bishop Gorman.

St. Augustine, which came in as a top three team from San Diego County but on paper a shade below its prior two teams who participated in the tourney, advanced with a 52-41 victory over Mater Lakes (Miami, Fla.), which took its third loss of the season. Sophomore guard Jaden Bailes had a big game with six 3-pointers and 25 points for St. Augustine (8-1). Bailes is one of the better 2026 prospects in the tourney and is one to track for D1 college coaches.

The Vegas locals could have had three teams to get behind in the winner's bracket as Conorado (Henderson, Nev.) battled with state-ranked St. Pius-St. Matthias (Downey, Calif.) in a back-and-forth affair. The SoCal club, which came in 4-1, finally put it together down the stretch after a slow start and got the key bucket it needed with 36 seconds remaining. That's when San Francisco-bound wing Tyrone Riley made a contested baseline layup to give St. Pius-St. Matthias a four point lead in its eventual 67-62 victory.

Riley finished with 24 points after being held scoreless for the first 12 minutes of the game. Highly-regarded 6-foot-8 2025 power forward Doug Langford added 19 points. He's tracking nicely as a mid-major plus/high-major minus and Langford's production will be key in the quarterfinal matchup with Alta's 6-foot-8 Utah-bound Jaxon Johnson. The Sandy, Utah program entered the tournament at No. 44 in the FAB 50 and moved to 8-0 with its first-round victory.

In the best first round matchup in a battle of unbeatens, Alta took down 10-0 Clovis West (Fresno, Calif.). Alta took control of the game in the third period, outscoring the Golden Eagles, 16-8, as Clovis West netted only four points in the first six minutes of the quarter after trailing 37-30 at halftime. Leading the way in Alta's 74-63 win with a 20-point performance was 5-foot-11 2024 guard Ace Reiser, a composed and crafty shot-maker who can handle defensive pressure and wreak havoc on both sides of the ball. Johnson and 5-foot-8 2026 Dash Reiser, a blur with the ball and Ace's brother, both finished with 15 points.

In the opposite bracket, Desert Mountain (Scottsdale, Ariz.) advanced to the quarterfinals to face host Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, Nev.) with a 74-69 victory over battle-tested Campbell Hall (North Hollywood, Calif.). After a slow start Desert Mountain (7-1), in particular 6-foot-3 freshman (2027) Javon Bardwell, came alive in the second half, as he netted 26 of his 28 points in the final 16 minutes after not playing in the first period and scoring two points in the second. Desert Mountain, which owns a victory over highly-regarded Sierra Canyon (Chatsworth, Calif.), also got 24 points from 6-foot-3 sophomore point guard Kaden House before he fouled out. House, one of the most exciting players in the tournament, will need to quarterback his team to a lower turnover count to get it past the Gaels.

Bishop Gorman (6-0) was the second of the three Nevada Interscholastic Athletic Association (NIAA) clubs to advance, taking down a game Sagemont (Weston, Fla.) club, 69-66. With the game in the balance, 2025 guard Nick Jefferson made two key buckets down the stretch and Grid-Hoop stud Jett Washington, a 6-foot-5 sophomore wing who doubles as a safety and wide receiver for the mythical national championship Gaels' football team, had a key steal and finish to give Bishop Gorman the cushion it needed. Jefferson finished with 25 points, five rebounds, seven assists and four steals. Washington, the nephew of the late Kobe Bryant, added 19 points and four steals. Sixteen of those points came in the critical fourth period.

Florida High School Athletic Association schools were 0-2 in the first round until Calvary Christian (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) got the FHSAA off the schneid with its 55-46 victory over Centennial (Corona, Calif.), the event champion in 2019. Centennial (7-5) led 22-5, but the Eagles stormed back and caught Centennial at the end of the third period, 38-38, before pulling away in the fourth period, as the Huskies had trouble keeping Calvary Christian out of the paint. Centennial was also hurt when UCLA-bound wing Eric Freeny (9 points) fouled out with 5:32 remaining in the game.

Calvary Christian (6-1) was led to victory by 6-foot-7 2024 John Roland Jr. with 16 points. Junior 6-foot-7 forward Shon Abaev also made a second half impact and finished with 10 points. The Eagles also have a budding star in freshman (2027) point guard Cayden Daughtry, a 5-foot-11 dynamo who can handle the ball like a seasoned veteran, has a sweet shooting touch and can create separation for the 3-ball while being under control. Daughtry had 16 points, including three 3-pointers.

Calvary Christian will take on Branson (Ross, Calif.), which defeated St. Bernard (Playa del Rey, Calif.), 71-57, in a game that was a bit more competitive than the final score indicated. It was the first loss of the season for the Vikings.

The difference-maker for Branson (5-1) was Illinois-bound power guard Jase Butler, who made timely outside shots and also punished the Vikings inside. The 6-foot-4 senior finished with 25 points, including five 3-pointers with four coming after intermission.

Tarkanian Classic Platinum Division Quarterfinals (12/19, PST)
St. Augustine (Calif.) vs. Arbor View (Nev.), 4:30 pm
Alta (Utah) vs. St. Pius (Calif.), 6 pm
Desert Mountain (Ariz.) vs. Bishop Gorman (Nev.), 7:30 pm
Calvary Christian (Fla.) vs. The Branson School (Calif.), 9 pm

Ronnie Flores is the national Grassroots editor of Ballislife.com. He can be reached at [email protected]. Don't forget to follow him on Twitter: @RonMFlores