High School Basketball World Championships Tip Off in SLC This Weekend

Some of the nation’s top men’s high school basketball teams and players will be in Salt Lake City this weekend when the Grind Session World Championships tip off with the tournament’s Round of 16 and Quarterfinals.

The slate of games will be played at Highland High School Friday through Sunday and feature 16 teams from 10 states and Canada.

McDonald’s All-American and BYU commit AJ Dybantsa, who is the frontrunner for the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft, headlines a field filled with 20 of the country’s Top 100-rated prospects in the ’25, ’26, and ’27 classes. The 6-foot-9 forward plays for Utah Prep in Hurricane. Utah Prep is currently ESPN’s No. 21-ranked team in the country.

The action-packed weekend will also feature ESPN’s No. 5 team, Prolific Prep. The Napa, California program is led by two more McDonald’s All Americans – Darryn Peterson and Niko Bundalo. Peterson is believed by many pundits to challenge Dybantsa for the top pick in 2026.

Here's the complete list of Top 100-rated prospects playing this weekend:

• AJ Dybantsa, Utah Prep – Class of 2025 #1 prospect (consensus) – McDonald’s All-American
• Darryn Peterson, Prolific Prep – Class of 2025 #2 prospect (ESPN) – McDonald’s All-American
• Niko Bundalo, Prolific Prep – Class of 2025 #28 prospect (ESPN) – McDonald’s All-American
• Xavion Staton, Utah Prep – Class of 2025 # 31 prospect (247Sports)
• JJ Mandaquit, Utah Prep – Class of 2025 #47 prospect (ESPN)
• Paulo Semedo, West Oaks Academy – Class of 2025 #77 prospect (ESPN)
• Brayden Hawthorne, Huntington Expression Prep – Class of 2025 #71 prospect (247Sports)
• Mazi Mosley, Prolific Prep – Class of 2025 #72 prospect (247Sports)
• Winters Grady, Prolific Prep – Class of 2025 #41 prospect (Rivels)
• Brandon Lee, The Patrick School – Class of 2025 #89 prospect (Rivels)
• Ikenna Alozie, Prolific Prep – Class of 2026 #10 prospect (ESPN)
• Anthony Felesi, Utah Prep – Class of 2026 #42 prospect (On3)
• Willie Burnett III, West Oaks Academy – Class of 2026 #49 prospect (ESPN)
• Marcis “Little Shaq” Ponder, West Oaks Academy – Class of 2026 #58 prospect (Rivels)
• Jacob Lanier, DME Academy – Class of 2026 #86 prospect (247Sports)
• Arafan Dione, Iowa United – Class of 2026 #54 prospect (Rivels)
• Gabe Nesmith, Prolific Prep – Class of 2027 #8 prospect (ESPN)
• Obinna Ekezie, Prolific Prep – Class of 2027 #9 prospect (ESPN)
• Martay Barnes, Academy of Central FL – Class of 2027 #12 prospect (Rivels)
• Christopher Brown, Dream City Christian –Class of 2027 #42 prospect (Rivels)

Here’s the full schedule:

Men’s Round of 16

Friday, March 14

5:00 p.m. – (7) West Oaks Academy vs. (10) Ft. Erie International

6:45 p.m. – (1) Prolific Prep vs. (16) The Patrick School

8:30 p.m. – (2) Dream City Christian vs. (15) DNA Prep

Saturday, March 15

1:30 p.m. – (8) Academy of Central FL vs. (9) Royal Crown School

3:15 p.m. – (3) Winston Salem Christian vs. (14) DME Wisconsin

5:00 p.m. – (4) DME Academy Florida vs. (13) Colorado Prep

6:45 p.m. – (5) Iowa United vs. (12) Huntington Expression Prep

8:30 p.m. – (5) Utah Prep vs. (11) The Fort

Winners on Friday and Saturday will battle in the Quarterfinals on Sunday, March 16 at 11:00 a.m., 12:45 p.m., 2:30 p.m., and 4:15 p.m.

The men's Final Four and Championship game will be played the following weekend in Lawrence, Kansas.

To put into perspective how good the Grind Session is: the winter circuit of elite high school basketball events has featured over 3,000 players who have gone on to play collegiate or professional basketball, including more than 20 first-round NBA draft picks. That list includes two recent NBA champions in Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray and Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum.

Admission is $15 a day and can be purchased at the door or ahead of time at https://events.humanitix.com/grind-session-championship-quarterfinals-salt-lake-city. Kids aged 6 and under are free.

Games can also be viewed on Tanager Sports.