The roller-coaster grassroots calendar reaches its peak during the next two weeks.
Girls basketball programs across the country are locking in on the last two live periods of the summer, spanning July 11-14 and July 18-21. These are the last opportunities for Division 1 college coaches to scout in-person until September, so the stakes are high for both coaches and recruits.
That final live weekend includes many of the relevant AAU circuit championships. We'll still see some cross-circuit competition in the upcoming live weekend before most disperse to their respective associations. Because most circuit championships take place in different cities, there's a lot more to track from a New England perspective.
Here are six locales that draw most of the region's top AAU teams.
Hamilton, Ohio
Select Events puts its roots down in Ohio with three huge showcases: the Select Super Showcase (July 10-12), the Midwest Summer Classic (July 13-14) and The Finale (July 18-21), which serves as the organization's circuit championship event.
MCW Starz is the local Power 24 circuit member and finished second in the 17U national bracket last summer. They should be in the hunt again and will have Bella Owumi (ranked No. 32 in the 2027 class by ESPN) as a program headliner. iBelieve Elite and the Maine Firecrackers compete on the secondary Select 40 circuit.
The Super Showcase will also draw several New England teams not on the Select circuits, including iDream, Mass Rivals, Shooting Touch and RIBC. New England Storm will play in the Midwest Summer Classic.
Louisville, Kentucky
The Run for the Roses Classic (July 10-12) is among the largest grassroots events in the United States by sheer volume. The 2026 field alone contains a dizzying 450-plus teams, and the 2027, 2028 and 2029 age groups are also loaded. Many of these teams will continue on to the Run for the Roses Championship, which follows after from July 13-15.
Among the New England representatives are the Bay State Jaguars, which will bring their fleet of teams and compete in some of the top brackets. Other programs include: Boston Showstoppers, Connecticut Basketball Club, Dana Barros Elite, CT Royalty, MT Elite Ducks, Worcester Sting, BCRI, XGen Elite, CT Northstars, Team Saints, Team NSSA and D4S.
Louisville also lumps in the third Nike EYCL session, so the Mass Huskies and New England Crusaders will compete here before their Chicago championships.
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Hoop Group's Showcase League includes a bunch of quality New England grassroots programs, and the championship goes down in Atlantic City (July 18-21) following a Jersey Shore Live tournament in Neptune, N.J. spanning July 11-14.
New England Storm's 2027 squad will be the No. 1 seed in the HGSL championship bracket. Several other programs have a legitimate chance at going far in the championship tournaments, including Connecticut Basketball Club, iDream and Boston Showstoppers.
Manheim, Pennsylvania
The Bay State Jaguars' Under Armour squads have a busy live period. They'll briefly compete in Kentucky and then hop over to Indianapolis, Ind. for the third UAA circuit session. Then they go to Manheim (Spooky Nook) for the circuit championships. Among those Jags teams to watch is the 16U UAA squad, headlined by fourth-ranked 2028 star Ella Peper. That team is 4-1 in circuit play so far.
Under Armour's secondary UA Rise circuit mirrors the UAA schedule. Keep an eye on MT Ducks Elite, Dana Barros Elite and CT Northstars, along with the Jags' additional UA rise teams.
Also in Spooky Nook: the Select Summer Championships (July 18-21). This event does not include Select's top Power 24 and Select 40 circuits, but does involve plenty of other solid programs. Shooting Touch's talented 15U squad competes here.
Chicago, Illinois
Nike's EYBL circuit ends its schedule with Nike Nationals championship weekend in Chicago from July 18-21st. Though New England has no EYBL teams, the Mass Huskies and New England Crusaders compete on the secondary EYCL circuit.
The Huskies' 2026 team is 9-1 in EYCL play so far. The top team in the EYCL receives a spot in Nike Nationals with the EYBL teams, so there's a chance this squad could earn the selective promotion.
Rock Hill, South Carolina
Mass Rivals is the only Adidas 3SSB program from New England, and after competing in Ohio, they'll return to Rock Hill for the circuit championships July 17-21. Rivals' 17U roster is 4-4 through two sessions and includes the region's two nationally-ranked 2026 talents in Fope Ayo (No. 34) and Elyse Ngenda (No. 100).
