Chick-fil-A East-West Classic
Today at East Hamilton6 p.m. Houston girls vs. East HamiltonFriday at East HamiltonNoon. Notre Dame girls vs. East Hamilton1:30 p.m. Oakhaven boys vs. East Hamilton3 p.m. Arlington girls vs. Oak Ridge4:30 p.m. Bolton boys vs. Bradley Central6 p.m. Houston girls vs. Bradley Central7:30 p.m. Fayette-Ware boys vs. Oak RidgeSaturday at Bradley Central1:30 p.m. Bolton boys vs. Oak Ridge3 p.m. Houston girls vs. Oak Ridge4:30 p.m. Fayette-Ware boys vs. East Hamilton6 p.m. Arlington girls vs. Bradley Central7:30 p.m. Oakhaven boys vs. Bradley Central
The Chattanooga area will host five high school basketball teams from West Tennessee in the first East-West Classic, which is being held at East Hamilton and Bradley Central.
Action begins at 6 tonight with East Hamilton hosting Houston's girls, a Class AAA state semifinalist last season.
Houston's standouts include two 5-foot-10 junior guards. Jayla Hemingway is a Division I recruit who was a Miss Basketball finalist last season, and Madison Griggs is a 3-point specialist with scholarship offers from Southeastern Conference programs. Additionally, Destiny Wells is a 5-8 sophomore point guard who has also drawn interest from colleges.
The remaining 11 games are Friday at East Hamilton and Saturday at Bradley Central. Admission is $8 each day.
Bradley Central's Rhyne Howard, left, and East Hamilton's De'Zah Lacy will be among the participants competing this weekend in the Chick-fil-A East-West Classic held tonight and Friday at East Hamilton and Saturday at Bradley Central.Oak Ridge's teams join the boys and girls from East Hamilton and Bradley Central representing East Tennessee. The Wildcats and Lady Wildcats reached the Class AAA state tournaments last year.
Oak Ridge's girls, who lost to Memphis Central in the state quarterfinals, are coached by former Bradley Central and Vanderbilt player Paige Redman. They're led by senior guard/forward and Middle Tennessee State signee Mykia Dowdell. Junior Jada Guinn is a Division I prospect, and senior point guard Jaymi Golden is getting college looks.
"We couldn't ask for a better situation," Redman said of playing in the East-West Classic. "We get to play two teams from Memphis, and it's not only good competition, they play a different style of basketball than what we see on a nightly basis.
"They play at a much faster pace. The speed of the game is what got to us last year. If you don't see that all year, you're not mentally or physically prepared for that. It's one thing to see it on film. But actually seeing it in person is what can help us later, if we're lucky enough to get back to the state tournament."
The idea of bringing teams from opposite sides of the state together for a few days of challenging competition belongs to Hunter Gremore, who is in his second season as girls' coach at East Hamilton. He formerly coached at Arlington, a school located a little east of Memphis that will have one of the girls' teams participating in the inaugural event.
Gremore had Arlington teams play in Memphis's Penny Hardaway National Hoopfest, which by name is enough to indicate there was no shortage of great competition in that tournament. That got Gremore thinking he could create an event that would bring strong teams from his former area and new area together for a weekend of competition that would be mutually beneficial.
Wes Shappley was a boys' coach at Arlington when Gremore was there. He's now head coach of the girls, who last season in his first year lost a close game at Houston in a Class AAA state sectional.
East Hamilton girls' basketball coach Hunter Gremore, center, formerly coached at Arlington, which is one of the girls' teams making the trip to the Chattanooga area to compete in the Chick-fil-A East-West Classic this weekend at East Hamilton and Bradley Central.The Lady Tigers feature 6-foot-4 junior Lanetta Williams, who averages 13 points and nine rebounds per game and has scholarship offers from multiple SEC and Atlantic Coast Conference schools. Caitlyn Wilson (17 points per game, seven rebounds per game) is a 6-foot junior guard who is a talented 3-point shooter with offers from several NCAA Division I schools. Taylor Lattimore (10 points per game, five assists per game) is a 5-8 senior guard who has signed to play at Jackson State in Mississippi.
"I told my kids what they were in for," Shappley said. "Girls' basketball is dominant in Middle and East Tennessee. I don't think they know. I told them, 'You'll be playing teams that are sound at every position. They aren't going to turn it over a lot. They shoot the ball extremely well. They're well-coached. You're really going to have to work to beat these teams. You're about to see what it's like at the state level.'
"They're really excited. But I don't think they really realize what they're getting into."
The boys' teams from West Tennessee in the Classic are Bolton, Oakhaven and Fayette-Ware, which reached the Class AA state sectionals last season.
Bartlett's girls were originally in the field but recently decided to withdraw. Notre Dame's girls agreed to fill in for a game, which will be against East Hamilton at noon Friday.
All of the other matchups will be East vs. West. When asked if a tally will be kept of how the sides do against each other Gremore said: "Yes, we probably will do that. It'll be fun."
Contact Kelley Smiddie at ksmiddie@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6653. Follow him on Twitter @KelleySmiddie.