Findlay Prep draws familiar foe for Dick’s Nationals opener
Findlay Prep’s boys basketball team will participate in the Dick’s High School Nationals tournament for the ninth straight time.
And the Pilots will see a familiar opponent when they arrive in New York in two weeks.
Findlay Prep earned the No. 4 seed when the brackets were released Wednesday and faces fifth-seeded Oak Hill Academy (Virginia) in the quarterfinals at 11 a.m. March 30 at Christ the King High School. The game will be televised on ESPNU.
Findlay Prep (32-3) beat the Warriors 78-62 in the title game of the Iolani Classic on Dec. 21 in Hawaii.
Oak Hill is the defending champion of the Dick’s Nationals tournament.
“We’re excited,” Pilots coach Paul Washington said. “It’s hard to play somebody twice, and it was a convincing win the first time, so they’ll be coming at us the second time. We’ve got film on them. They’re a good team. We’ll be ready.”
The contest will feature two McDonald’s All-Americans: Oak Hill’s Billy Preston, a Kansas commit, and the Pilots’ Kentucky-bound P.J. Washington.
Findlay Prep hasn’t played since Feb. 28.
“We gave them a nice break,” Washington said. “They’re excited to go back to work.”
Findlay Prep won the event in 2009, 2010 and 2012 when it was known as the National High School Invitational. Last season, the Pilots lost 67-65 in the quarterfinals to Miller Grove (Georgia).
The schedule includes Montverde Academy (Florida) taking on Shadow Mountain (Arizona), IMG Academy (Florida) facing Greensboro Day (North Carolina) and top-seeded La Lumiere (Indiana) playing Wasatch Academy (Utah).
Nathan Hale (Washington), which is ranked No. 1 in the USA Today Super 25 poll, declined an invitation to the tournament.
The semifinals take place March 31, with the title game scheduled for April 1 at Madison Square Garden.
