Holiday Classic rich in talented players, teams

The sixth annual HealthSouth Holiday Classic tips off today and some of the state's best players and teams will hit the hardwood at the Show Me Center.

The three-day girls basketball tournament features a strong eight-team field that includes two state-ranked teams.

Poplar Bluff, the No. 1 seed, is ranked second in the first Class 4A poll of the season, while Notre Dame of Cape Girardeau, the No. 2 seed, is second in Class 2A. The Lady Mules are undefeated at 9-0; Notre Dame is 5-1.

Cape Central, Jackson, Jackson's JV, Farmington, Perryville and Massac County (Metropolis, Ill.) round out the field.

Semifinals will be held Friday with the championship to be played at 7 p.m. Saturday.

Poplar Bluff has enjoyed tremendous success at the Classic as the Lady Mules have walked away with four of the five championship trophies.

Jackson, in the inaugural event in 1996, is the only other team to capture a HealthSouth championship. The Lady Indians also have two second-place Classic finishes.

Seeking its fifth consecutive title, the formidable Poplar Bluff quintet is led by two-time all-state point guard Ashley Williams and all-region forward Nicole Rivers.

ND's only loss to PB

Notre Dame, last year's Class 2A state runner-up, has only a three-point loss to Poplar Bluff -- in the championship game of the Farmington Tournament -- to mar its record thus far.

"It's a tough tournament," said Notre Dame coach Jerry Grim. "Bluff, Jackson or us have the potential to win it, and Massac County always has a strong team."

Led by all-staters Lisa Millham and Deana McCormick, the Lady Bulldogs thrive on a fundamentally sound, mistake-free style that should keep them in the game against any opponent.

Senior sharpshooter Lisa Millham paces Notre Dame with a 16.8 points per game, while 6-foot post player McCormick averages 12.8 ppg and 6.3 rebounds. Junior Ashley Millham is the second-leading scorer at 13.2 ppg.

Jackson, led by versatile 6-foot junior Jenna Leet, is seeded third with a 4-2 record.

Leet, an athletic potential Division I prospect, averages about 19 ppg, along with 5 rebounds and 2 assists per contest.

The Lady Indians, however, will be missing a key player in 6-1 center Alisha Burns, who is out indefinitely with a bout of tonsillitis.

"Poplar Bluff has got to have the edge on everybody," said Jackson's veteran mentor Ron Cook, whose team was defeated handily by the Lady Mules earlier this month.

"They've got almost everybody back and I think they're stronger this year than last. It's going to be a tough road for us to get to the championship."

The Lady Indians, who claimed third in Class 4A in last year's state tournament, will also have to shake off a little rust from inactivity as they have not competed in game conditions since thrashing Perryville on Dec. 10.

A late addition to the field due to the cancellation of Heritage Christian Academy (Hopkinsville, Ky.) is the Jackson junior varsity team, which received the eighth seed. The JV (5-1) will have its hands full against Poplar Bluff today at 5:30 p.m.

But Jackson's JV coach Sam Sides is not conceding anything.

Said Sides, "I've told the girls that our goal is to play to win. I don't see a downside, because it'll be a great learning experience, since we'll be competing against some quality teams."

Central could be sleeper

Cape Central (7-2), seemingly improving with each outing, has been getting strong performances from senior forward Sarah Hyslop, junior forward Alex Wieser and sophomore point guard Megan McDonald, in particular.

"They might be the sleeper in the tournament," said Cook of the fourth-seeded Lady Tigers, who claimed second-place finishes in '96 and '99.

Cape Central, coming off a 53-42 win over Farmington Monday night, will face the Knightettes again in the tournament opener today at 4 p.m.

Farmington, a perennially strong Class 4A team, comes in as the fifth seed, followed by No. 6 Massac County and No. 7 Perryville.

Jackson meets Massac County today at 7 p.m., followed by Notre Dame vs. Perryville at 8:30.