NEW ORLEANS (January 8, 2023) – Tennessee's Bartlett High School nearly became the first team to win boys and girls titles at the Allstate Sugar Bowl National Prep Basketball Classic this weekend at the Alario Center. Instead, the Panthers had to settle for the Girls' Platinum Championship and runner-up honors in the Boys' National Bracket. Olympia High School from Florida earned the title in the Boys' National Bracket. Jesuit High School of New Orleans won the Boys' State Bracket while Louisiana's Amite High School took home the Girls' Gold Championship.
 
Boys National Bracket
Boys State Bracket
Girls Platinum Bracket
Girls Gold Bracket
Tournament Website
 
This year marked the 12th edition of the Allstate Sugar Bowl National Prep Classic. It featured 54 total teams competing in four brackets (two for boys and two for girls). In its first 12 years, the tournament has featured teams from Alabama, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, New York, North Carolina, South Carolina, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Tennessee, Texas and Virginia.
 
The Boys' National Bracket featured eight out-of-state teams matched up against eight New Orleans-area schools, including a pair of LHSAA defending state champs: Archbishop Hannan (Division II) and Isidore Newman (Division III) as well as Division I runner-up John Curtis. Louisiana schools split the first-round match-ups, but then Olympia and Bartlett battled their way to a hard-fought championship game won by Olympia, 58-53.
 
Olympia's Jizzle James, a Cincinnati commit and the son of former NFL star Edgerrin James, was tremendous throughout the tournament, including in the championship game. He scored 22 points with six rebounds, along with pair of steals and a pair of assists and earned Most Valuable Player honors.
 
The 16-team Girls' Platinum Bracket included four out-of-state teams as well as five LHSAA defending state champions: Ponchatoula (Class 5A), Ellender (Class 4A), John Curtis (Division I), Lafayette Christian (Division II), and Southern Lab (Division IV), as well as Class 4A runner-up Warren Easton. Bartlett knocked off John Curtis and Warren Easton before topping Kenwood (Chicago) to reach the finals where it held off Lafayette Christian, 66-63, in overtime.
 
Naveah Scott scored 20 points, including six in overtime, to lead the Panthers to victory, but it was Lafayette Christian's Jada Richard who earned MVP honors. Richard scored 35 points to go with seven rebounds, four assists and four steals for the Knights. Her three-pointer in overtime gave LCA a lead but they couldn't hold on.
 
Amite High School won the Girls' Gold Bracket for the second straight year with four straight victories, including a 53-48 decision over St. Thomas More in the championship game. The Lady Warriors trailed 48-46 with three minutes to go but scored the final seven points to earn the title. Miracle Irving led the way with 19 points, five rebounds, four steals and two assists and was named the Most Valuable Player. AC Froelich led St. Thomas More with 20 points, 14 rebounds and five blocks.
 
In the Boys' State Bracket, Jesuit topped defending LHSAA Division V state champ Family Christian in the first round, 43-34, and then edged rival Holy Cross, 50-49, in the semifinals to advance to face another rival in Archbishop Rummel. "The two sides who reflect each other in approach and stature battled in rugged fashion, struggling to score in a down and dirty battle and in the end, the Blue Jays emerged victorious 38-37 to win the title," as written by Ken Trahan from CrescentCitySports.com. Josh Washington was named the Most Valuable Player after leading the Blue Jays with 11 points, four rebounds and three blocks. T.J. Duhe led the Raiders with 15 points and five steals.

2023 Allstate Sugar Bowl National Prep Classic Individual Honors
 
Boys' National All-Tournament Team
Jizzle James, Olympia, Fla. (MVP)
Kevins Charles/Olympia, Fla.
Jackson Outlaw/Olympia, Fla.
KJ Neville/Bartlett, Tenn.
Jack Shackelford/Bartlett, Tenn.
Tounde Yessoufou/St Joseph, Calif.
Luis Marin/St Joseph, Calif.
Kameron Johnson/Archbishop Shaw
Autrail Manning/John Curtis Christian
Kohen Robatham/Northshore

Girls' Platinum All-Tournament Team
Jada Richard, Lafayette Christian (MVP)
Sinai Tyler/Kenwood, Ill.
Lindsey Cox/McGill-Toolen
Makayla Charles/Vandebilt Catholic
Imani Daniel/John Curtis Christian
Talia Busser/Parrish Community, Fla.
Taylyn Taylor/Lafayette Christian
Mallory Collier/Bartlett, Tenn.
Neveah Scott/Bartlett, Tenn.
Carrington Jones/Bartlett, Tenn.

Girls' Gold All-Tournament Team
Miracle Irving, Amite (MVP)
Hayley Brumfield/Amite
Kayla Toefield/Amite
AC Froelich/St Thomas More
Colleen Domingue/St Thomas More
Camille Hebert/St Thomas More
Cherie Spencer/Northshore
Kaysharia Wood/Liberty
Tierre McPipe/Zachary
 
Boys' State All-Tournament Team
Josh Washington, Jesuit (MVP)
Jude Laforge/Jesuit
Jack Lo/Jesuit
Josh Washington/Jesuit
Tim Duhe/Rummel
Chase Marino/Rummel
  
The Allstate Sugar Bowl has a rich history with the sport of basketball. Dating back as far as 1936, the Sugar Bowl has sponsored basketball events in conjunction with the annual football classic. In addition, the Bowl has been a sponsor for multiple local events in the sport. In 2008, the Sugar Bowl Committee partnered with other local organizations to put together a successful bid to host the 2012 NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four. The Bowl also worked with Tulane and the Greater New Orleans Sports Foundation to host the 2013 NCAA Women's Basketball Final Four, a role it was scheduled to reprise for the 2020 NCAA Women's Final Four, which was cancelled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
 
The Allstate Sugar Bowl has established itself as one of the premier college football bowl games, having hosted 28 national champions, 102 Hall of Fame players, 52 Hall of Fame coaches and 21 Heisman Trophy winners in its 89-year history. The 90th Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic, which will double as a College Football Playoff Semifinal, is scheduled to be played on January 1, 2024. In addition to football, the Sugar Bowl Committee annually invests over $1 million into the community through the hosting and sponsorship of sporting events, awards, scholarships and clinics. Through these efforts, the organization supports and honors thousands of student-athletes each year, while injecting over $2.2 billion into the local economy in the last decade.