No. 2 Montverde (FL) Academy boys, No. 3 Westlake (GA) girls are top seeds at the GEICO High School Nationals that tip off on March 31; boys’ event features 10 teams with two play-in games

BENSALEM, Pa. – The Montverde (Fla.) Academy boys and Westlake (Atlanta) girls earned top seeds at the upcoming GEICO High School Nationals that tip off on March 31 at the Suncoast Credit Union Arena in Fort Myers, Fla.

After a one year absence due to coronavirus concerns in 2020, the prestigious event is leaving the friendly confines of New York City for the Florida sun. No fans will be allowed in Suncoast Credit Union Arena but all 12 games will be broadcast on the ESPN family of networks.

In a new twist for the boys’ tournament is the addition of two teams bringing the bracket to 10 teams with two play-in games on March 31. Nine of the 10 teams are featured in the Blue Star Media Elite 25 boys’ basketball rankings. Three of the four girls’ teams are ranked by Blue Star Media.

As for the boys’ tournament, the opening day doubleheader has seventh-seeded Prolific Prep (Napa, Calif.) facing 10^th-seeded La Lumiere School (La Porte, Ind.) at 6 p.m. EDT and eight-seeded Pace Academy (Atlanta) plays ninth-seeded Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, Va.) at 8 p.m. Both games will be shown live on ESPNU.

The quarterfinals are April 1 (all on ESPNU) starting at 12 p.m. with No. 3 IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.) and No. 6 Milton (Alpharetta, Ga.) followed by No. 2 Sunrise Christian Academy (Bel Aire, Kan.) facing the winner of Prolific Prep-La Lumiere game at 2 p.m. The action resumes with top-seeded Montverde Academy meeting the Oak Hill-Pace winner at 4 p.m. The final game is No. 4 AZ Compass Prep (Chandler, Ariz.) playing Wasatch Academy (Mount Pleasant, Utah) at 6 p.m.

The semifinals are April 2 at 2:30 and 4:30 p.m., both on ESPN2. The championship game is April 3 at 12 p.m. on ESPN.

Westlake, which won the Georgia Class AAAAAA state title over the weekend, faces fourth-seeded Fremont (Plain City, Utah) in the semifinals at 12:30 p.m. on April 2. The opening semifinal game is second-seeded Lake Highland Prep (Orlando, Fla.) meeting Paul VI (Chantilly, Va.) at 10:30 a.m. The games are on ESPNU. The girls’ final is April 3 at 10 a.m. on ESPN2.

Lake Highland Prep, No. 1 in the Blue Star Media Elite 25 rankings, won the Florida Class 4A state championship. Fremont captured the Utah Class 6A crown. Paul VI went unbeaten in the regular season but did not play in a postseason tournament.