Six teams are expected to compete at the annual Dick Hotch Memorial Basketball Tournament starting 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 26, at the Haines School.
The bracket is to feature the two-time defending champion Klukwan Chilkats, who defeated the Southeast Warriors of Juneau, 97-89, in last year’s championship game to finish with a 6-0 record. Other returnees are the Haines Merchants, Harbor Heat and Hoonah, with Whitehorse rounding out the field after a brief hiatus.
The adult basketball tournament runs through the 1 p.m. championship game on Sunday, March 1. Free-throw contests are set for 10 a.m. Sunday morning, in divisions for age 9-and-under; 10-11; and 12-13, with cash prizes. The men’s and women’s three-point shooting contests also will be Sunday morning.
Organizer Stuart DeWitt, named Most Valuable Player and Most Inspirational at the 2014 competition, said the tournament appears to have an “even playing field.”
“We’re going to have six real competitive teams, which will be fun for everybody,” DeWitt said.
All-tournament performers last year included Andrew Friske and Harry Rietze (Klukwan); Cody Hotch and Jacob Hotch (Warriors); Richard Bachman, James Hart and Bubba Larson (Harbor); and Bryan Combs (Merchants).
Admission is $5 a session, or $25 for a tournament pass. The event will be sandwiched around re-scheduled Haines High School boys’ basketball games against Metlakatla on Friday and Saturday nights. Those game times were to be determined as of this week.
Updates are available on Facebook at the “2015 Dick Hotch Memorial Tournament” page.