DICK’S Sporting Goods High School Nationals Basketball Tournament Returns to New York City

Anna Negron

The nation’s top-ranked high school basketball teams will return to New York City for a dynamic, season-ending tournament March 30 – April 1, 2017. For the fourth consecutive year, DICK’S Sporting Goods (NYSE: DKS), the largest U.S. based, full-line sporting goods retailer, will serve as the event’s title sponsor, and the entire event will be televised across ESPN networks.

“We are excited to continue our support of high school basketball by sponsoring the DICK’S Sporting Goods High School Nationals Tournament again in 2017,” said Mark Rooks, Vice President of Sports and Community Marketing, DICK’S Sporting Goods. “Last year’s event was a tremendous success, and we look forward to seeing the best high school basketball teams in the country compete again next spring.”

The tournament begins on Thursday, Mar. 30 with the boys quarterfinal games (ESPNU), continues Friday, Mar. 31 with the boys (ESPN2) and girls (ESPNU) semifinals, and concludes Saturday, Apr. 1 with the boys (ESPN) and girls (ESPN2) championships from Christ the King High School in New York City.

As in previous years, the boys tournament will feature eight of the top-ranked teams in the nation, while the girls field will feature four teams. For the first time in tournament history, all twelve (12) teams in the 2016 DICK’S Nationals field were nationally ranked in the Expert Rankings— boys:  No. 2 Oak Hill Academy (VA), No. 3 La Lumiere School (IN), No. 5 Montverde Academy (FL), No. 8 Miller Grove (GA), No. 10 Findlay Prep (NV), No. 12 St. Benedict’s (NJ), No. 14 Wasatch Academy (UT), No. 18 Providence Day (NC); girls: No. 3 Ribault (FL), No. 8 Seton Catholic (AZ), No. 11 Riverdale Baptist (MD) and No. 15 St. Francis (GA).

Both the 2017 boys and girls fields will be announced in March, following the completion of this year’s high school basketball season.

Event History

The National High School Invitational (NHSI) launched in 2009 at Georgetown Prep in Bethesda, MD. The event was created by Paragon Marketing Group to provide a season-ending platform for top, nationally-ranked high school basketball teams to compete against one another in a season-ending tournament. In 2014, DICK’S Sporting Goods became title sponsor of the tournament; the event moved to New York City and became the DICK’S Sporting Goods High School Nationals.  DICK’S Sporting Goods and Paragon Marketing Group reached an agreement in principle for DICK’S Sporting Goods to continue as the title sponsor in 2017, subject to a definitive agreement.

Past Champions (boys team followed by girls team):

About DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc.

Founded in 1948, DICK’S Sporting Goods, Inc. is a leading omni-channel sporting goods retailer offering an extensive assortment of authentic, high-quality sports equipment, apparel, footwear and accessories. As of October 29, 2016, the Company operated more than 675 DICK’S Sporting Goods locations, serving and inspiring athletes and outdoor enthusiasts to achieve their personal best through a blend of dedicated associates, in-store services and unique specialty shop-in-shops.  Headquartered in Pittsburgh, PA, DICK’S also owns and operates Golf Galaxy, Field & Stream, True Runner and Chelsea Collective specialty stores and  DICK’S Team Sports HQ,  an all-in-one youth sports digital platform with free league management services, including websites and online registration with free mobile app for scheduling and communications; custom uniforms and FanWear shops; and access to donations and sponsorships. For more information, visit the Press Room at DICKS.com.

About Paragon Marketing Group

Paragon Marketing Group is a corporate consulting agency specializing in sports, entertainment and cause related sponsorships. Paragon, owns and operates the DICK’S Sporting Goods High School Nationals Basketball Tournament and has partnered with ESPN over the past 13 years to deliver over 450 live high school football and basketball telecasts featuring many of the top teams and players in the nation. Paragon’s consulting clients include Bayer, EA Sports Gatorade, PNC Bank and UCHealth.

About ESPN

ESPN, Inc. is the leading multinational, multimedia sports entertainment company featuring the broadest portfolio of multimedia sports assets with over 50 business entities. Based in Bristol, Conn., with approximately 4,000 employees (approximately 8,000 worldwide) ESPN Plaza includes nearly 1.2 million square feet in 18 buildings on 123 acres (additional 500,000 sq. ft. rented nearby). The company is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc., an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company.  The Hearst Corporation holds a 20 percent interest in ESPN. In 2015, ESPN produced more than 51,000 hours of live event/studio programming across platforms.

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