Kentucky prep star Trent Noah headlines Arby’s field

BRISTOL, Tenn. – For 39 years, the Arby’s Classic has created memories for boys basketball fans across Northeast Tennessee and far beyond.

Tony Dunford knows the feeling

As a student at Pulaski County High School in Virginia, Dunford followed the legendary exploits of Pulaski County basketball star Mike Porter.

A world-class dunker, Porter earned tournament MVP honors en route to guiding his team to the first Arby’s title in 1983.

“I was in the eighth grade and I looked up to Porter as a Michael Jordan figure,” Dunford said. “Those were good times.”

On Dec. 26, Dunford will make his first Arby’s appearance as the head coach of the George Wythe Maroons.

During Sunday’s annual Arby’s press conference, Dunford drew traditional power Dorman for his round matchup.

GW returned four key components from a 26-4 squad that that advanced to the VHSL Class 1 title game last season.

“We have a group of kids who have really developed over the past three years, and we thought we could give them an opportunity to play better competition,” Dunford said.

With just 460 students, GW will be the smallest school in the tournament field. Players to watch are 6-1 junior guard Reed Kirtner, 5-11 sophomore guard David Goode, 5-11 senior guard Ty Campbell and 5-11 junior guard Treyvon Rainey.

“Our players, students and community are excited,” Dunford said. “We hope to play bigger than our enrollment.”

Dorman, based in Roebuck, South Carolina, has 4,010 students and captured the 5A state championship last season.

More local flavor for that latest edition of the Arby’s will come from Tennessee High, Daniel Boone, Sullivan East, Greeneville and Dobyns-Bennett.

The marquee is also jammed with familiar national programs and elite college-bound talents.

For example, the Harlan County Black Bears feature one of Kentucky’s top talents in South Carolina signee Trent Noah. The 6-foot-7 senior guard is a Mr. Basketball candidate after averaging 26 points and 12 rebounds last season.

Harlan County head coach Kyle Jones made the 80-mile trip to Bristol for Sunday’s press conference.

“We’ve read about this tournament and our athletic director has been trying to get us in since around the time our school opened,” Jones said. “We’re from a school mountain community and we have some hard-nosed kids eager to see what they can do against a high level of competition.”

“Trent is a very smart player and a great shooter and rebounder who has competed on the AAU circuit all his life,” Jones said. “I think everybody will enjoy watching Trent. We’ve not had a player sign with a Division I school in almost 30 years, so he’s special.”

Host school Tennessee High is coming off a landmark 28-8 season, but the Vikings returned just two regulars in 6-1 junior Colin Brown and 6-3 junior Zander Phillips.

“We have a really tough early-season schedule, and the Arby’s will give our guys a chance to grow up fast,” THS coach Michael McMeans said. “This experience can only make our guys better.”

THS opens the tournament on Dec. 26 with a 1 p.m. against Tabernacle Baptist.

Sullivan East relies on pair of college prospects in 6-3 senior point guard Drake Fisher and 6-5 junior center Corbin Laisure.

“I kind of kept the news of our participation away from our players as a surprise, and they freaked out when I told them about a month ago,” East coach Dillon Faver said. “These guys grow up watching Arby’s games from the stands.

“This will actually by my first year to be a head coach in the tournament, and it’s something that I’ve been looking forward ever since I heard the news.”

Longtime fan favorite Mentor (Ohio) will face Sullivan East on Dec. 26.

Other first round matchups on Dec. 26 include Daniel Boone vs. Maryville, Oak Ridge vs. Harlan County, and Greeneville vs. Kell, Georgia.

The Dec. 27 docket features matchups between Independence (Thompson’s Station, Tenn.) and South Shore (Brooklyn) and Dobyns-Bennett vs. Miami-based Mater Lakes Academy.

Maryville is led by Wes Lambert, son of longtime Maryville College head coach Randy Lambert.

“The Arby’s is one of the best tournaments in the nation, so this is an incredible opportunity for our program,” Wes Lambert said. “I think Maryville was last in this event in 2022.”

Randy Lambert currently serves as an assistant to his son, who relies on a sophomore-heavy squad.

The next step for many of the coaches in the Arby’s is research and film review.

“We don’t know much about Dorman, but my athletic director and I will reach out to as many people as we can to get a good scouting report,” Dunford said.

Game 1 – Tennessee High vs Tabernacle Baptist, 1:00 p.m.

Game 2 – Daniel Boone vs Maryville, 2:30 p.m.

Game 3 – George Wythe vs Dorman, S.C., 4:00 p.m.

Game 4 – Sullivan East vs Mentor, Ohio, 5:30 p.m.

Game 5 – Oak Ridge vs Harlan County, Ky., 7:30 p.m.

Game 6 – Greeneville vs Kell, Ga., 8:30 p.m.

Game 7 – Game 1 loser vs Game 2 loser, 2:30 p.m.

Game 8 – Game 1 winner vs Jackson-Reed, D.C. 4:00 p.m.

Game 9 – Independence vs South Shore, Ky., 5:30 p.m.

ADDINGTON AGENCY SLAM DUNK CONTEST, 6:00 p.m.

Game 10 – Dobyns-Bennett vs Mater Lakes, Fla., 7:15 p.m.

Game 11 – Game 2 winner vs Imhotep, PA, 8:45 p.m.

Game 12 – Game 3 loser vs Game 4 loser, 9:00 a.m.

Game 13 – Game 5 loser vs Game 6 loser, 10:30 a.m.

Game 14 – Game 8 loser vs Game 9 loser, Noon

Game 15 – Game 10 loser vs Game 11 loser, 1:30 p.m.

Game 16 – Game 3 winner vs Game 4 winner, 4:30 p.m.

Game 17 – Game 5 winner vs Game 6 winner, 6:00 p.m.

Game 18 – Game 8 winner vs Game 9 winner, 7:30 p.m.

Game 19 – Game 10 winner vs Game 11 winner, 9:00 a.m.

Game 20 – Game 12 winner vs Game 13 winner, 9:30 a.m.

Game 21 – Game 14 winner vs Game 15 winner, 11:00 a.m.

Game 22 – Game 16 loser vs Game 17 loser, 12:30 p.m.

Game 23 – Game 18 loser vs Game 19 loser, 2:00 p.m.

Game 24 – Game 16 winner vs Game 17 winner, 7:00 p.m.

Game 25 – Game 18 winner vs Game 19 winner, 8:30 p.m.

Game 26 – Game 7 winner vs Game 14 loser, Noon

Game 27 – (6th Place) Game 20 winner vs Game 21 winner, 1:30 p.m.

Game 28 – (5th Place) Game 22 winner vs Game 23 winner, 3:00 p.m.

FUN FACTORY 3-POINT CONTEST, 4:30 p.m.

Game 29 – (3rd Place) Game 24 loser vs Game 25 loser, 6:00 p.m.

Game 30 – (Championship) Game 24 winner vs Game 25 winner, 7:30 p.m.