Neville Men to Participate in Sidney Smiths Holiday Invitational Basketball Tournament... West Monroe, LA -- One of the area’s unique holiday traditions returns to the Twin Cities on Friday as the West Monroe Holiday Invitational Basketball Tournament tips off at West Monroe High School. This year, the tournament will take on the name of its founder, former West Monroe boys basketball coach Sidney Smith and will from now on be known as the Sidney Smith Holiday Invitational. The tournament, first known as the CONACO Classic in the late 1980’s, was began by Smith and was a one of a kind tournament for Northeastern Louisiana immediately following the Christmas holiday. Smith coached West Monroe from 1980-2000 and was the driving force behind the opening of the current basketball gym in 1989 that was a revolutionary design at the time. “It is the right thing to do,” West Monroe boys coach Kyle Hill said of the decision to honor Smith on Friday. “(Smith) is the man responsible for making West Monroe basketball what it is.” Smith will be honored Friday at 7 p.m. prior to Neville and Ouachita meeting in boys basketball action for the first time in recent memory. The tournament has been a big part of Hill’s life. Hill and his father would come to watch the tournament in its early beginnings and he later played in the tournament for Kilbourne High School in 1997. During the 1990’s, Smith took the Rebels across the country to tournaments similar to what he then started in West Monroe. West Monroe appeared in tournaments in New York, Las Vegas, Missouri and Florida to name a few. While putting the West Monroe name out there was big for the program, Smith will always be proud of another fact. “We had 33 guys sign scholarships was always a big deal to me,” Smith said. “It was a wonderful time, and I enjoyed it. I thank those guys for this honor.” Current West Monroe Lady Rebels basketball head coach John Green was an assistant coach under Smith from 1994-1998. “It is only fitting that his legacy include the naming of this,” Green said. “When he created this tournament, it was the event for teams. It was large in scope.” Green has been a big part of not only continuing to grow the Lady Rebels program but the Holiday Invitational which now includes an elite group of girls teams in the mix of 23 total teams – 14 girls and nine boys teams in a tournament that spans across two different gyms at West Monroe High School. Admission will cost $8 per day for admission to all games. The girls bracket will include some of the top 5A teams in the state including West Monroe, Ouachita, Natchitoches Central, Pineville, Ponchatoula, Walker, Mandeville, and New Iberia which features Louisiana Tech signee and point guard Kierra Anthony. The tournament will also feature West Ouachita, Rayville, Lakeview 4A powerhouse St. Michael of Baton Rouge, Fair Park of Shreveport and defending Class 2A state champion North Caddo. The boys tournament will include West Monroe, Ouachita, Neville, Rayville, New Living Word, Fair Park, Woodlawn-Shreveport, Evangel Christian, and Fontainbleau. 2014 Sidney Smith Holiday Invitational $8 daily pass good for all games that day. Friday, December 26 Games in New Gym Evangel vs. Fair Park Boys 1:40 p.m. Rayville vs. New Living Word Boys 3 p.m. Fontainbleau vs. Evangel Boys 4:20 p.m. West Monroe vs. Woodlawn-Shreveport Boys 5:40 p.m. Sidney Smith Ceremony 7 p.m. Neville vs. Ouachita Boys 7:30 p.m. Saturday, December 27 Games in New Gym Richwood vs. West Ouachita Girls 10:20 a.m. West Monroe vs. North Caddo Girls 11:40 a.m. Rayville vs. Fair Park Boys 1 p.m. Mandeville vs. Lakeview Girls 2:20 p.m. Fontaibleau vs. Woodlawn-Shreveport Boys 3:40 p.m. Neville vs. Rayville Boys 5 p.m. West Monroe vs. Evangel Boys 6:20 p.m. New Living Word vs. Ouachita 7:40 p.m. Games in Old Gym Natchitoches Central vs. Rayville Girls 2:20 p.m. New Iberia vs. Pineville Girls 3:40 p.m. Ponchatoula vs. Fair Park Girls 5 p.m. Walker vs. Ouachita Girls 6:20 p.m. St. Michael vs. Evangel Girls 7:40 p.m. Sunday, December 28 Games in New Gym West Monroe vs. Fontainbleau Boys 2 p.m. Mandeville vs. Rayville Girls 3:20 p.m. Natchitoches Central vs. Fair Park Girls 4:40 p.m. West Monroe vs. St. Michael Girls 6 p.m. Ponchatoula vs. Pineville Girls 7:20 p.m. Games in Old Gym West Ouachita vs. North Caddo Girls 2 p.m. New Iberia vs. Richwood Girls 3:20 p.m. Walker vs. Evangel Girls 4:40 p.m. Monday, December 29 Games in New Gym Mandeville vs. New Iberia Girls 9 a.m. Walker vs. Natchitoches Central 10:20 a.m. West Monroe vs. Ponchatoula Girls 11:20 a.m. Pineville vs. Richwood Girls 1 p.m. West Ouachita vs. Ouachita Girls 2:20 p.m. Ouachita vs. Evangel Boys 3:40 p.m. Rayville vs. Woodlawn-Shreveport Boys 5 p.m. Neville vs. Fair Park Boys 6:20 p.m. West Monroe vs. New Living Word Boys 7:40 p.m. Games in Old Gym Ouachita vs. Lakeview Girls 10:20 a.m. St. Michael vs. Fair Park Girls 11:40 a.m. Evangel vs. North Caddo Girls 1 p.m. Rayville v s. Lakeview Girls 2:20 p.m.
Posted on: Thu, 25 Dec 2014 16:42:06 +0000
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