We are in the thick of prep holiday showcase season and approaching the crown jewel event of the month: the Nickerson Showcase at Nobles.
The three-day event routinely brings a collection of New England's best prep schools, as well as dozens of college coaches who have extra time to scout during winter breaks.
This year's lineup is particularly stacked, with eight of the top 10 teams in our power rankings playing one or multiple games on Nobles' two courts during the weekend. The action begins at noon Friday and runs through Sunday afternoon.
Below is the full schedule of games, plus five key storylines to watch throughout the showcase.
MORE: NEPSAC Girls Power Rankings
Friday, Dec. 20
12:00 p.m.: Nobles vs. Hoosac
1:30 p.m.: Milton Academy vs. Winchendon
1:30 p.m.: Storm King vs. Northfield Mount Hermon
3:00 p.m.: Tilton vs. Wilbraham and Monson
3:00 p.m.: Kent vs. Greenwich Country Day
4:30 p.m.: Rivers vs. Choate
4:30 p.m.: Worcester Academy vs. New Hampton
6:00 p.m.: Sacred Heart vs. Darrow
6:00 p.m.: Loomis Chaffee vs. Tabor
Saturday, Dec. 21
12:00 p.m.: Hoosac vs. Winchendon
12:00 p.m.: Greenwich Country Day vs. Rivers
1:30 p.m.: Nobles vs. Loomis Chaffee
1:30 p.m.: Darrow vs. Choate
3:00 p.m.: Tabor vs. Wilbraham and Monson
3:00 p.m.: Tilton vs. Sacred Heart
4:30 p.m.: Storm King vs. Kent
6:00 p.m.: Milton Academy vs. Worcester Academy
6:00 p.m.: New Hampton vs. Northfield Mount Hermon
Sunday, Dec. 22
9:30 a.m.: Hoosac vs. Rivers
9:30 a.m.: Winchendon vs. Sacred Heart
11:00 a.m.: Choate vs. Storm King
12:30 p.m.: St. George’s vs. Wilbraham and Monson
12:30 p.m.: Loomis Chaffee vs. Greenwich Country Day
2:00 p.m.: Nobles vs. New Hampton
2:00 p.m.: Tilton vs. Northfield Mount Hermon
3:30 p.m.: Brooks vs. Milton Academy
3:30 p.m.: Tabor vs. Worcester Academy
5 storylines to watch
1. Tabor, which graced the cover of our fall magazine, cruised past its first opponents and then downed Tilton, 62-50, at home Wednesday. The No. 1 team in our power rankings gets three tests this weekend. Loomis Chaffee and Wilbraham Monson in particular boast star centers Alicia Mitchell (Springfield, Mass.) and Caterina Ravosa (East Longmeadow, Mass.), respectively, who should challenge the Seawolves in the frontcourt. Tabor doesn't have a true center, but top prospect Kaelyn Carroll (Dedham, Mass.), plus forwards Olivia Rodrigues (Dennis Port, Mass.) and Corinne Lomax (Watertown, Conn.) can pack a collective interior punch.
2. This is also a prove-it week for Loomis Chaffee after winning its first three games by more than 20 points, then beating St. Luke's by 10 on Wednesday. The Pelicans are three-time defending Class A champions, but we'll get to see how they stack up in the larger NEPSAC picture. First it's the Friday evening matchup with Tabor, but Saturday's contest against host Nobles should be fantastic. The individual matchup of highlight-reel Nobles scoring guard Christina Pham (South Boston, Mass.) and pesky Loomis defensive guard Abby Congdon (West Hartford, Conn.) will be must-see.
3. Northfield Mount Hermon has been the biggest early-season riser in our rankings and Nickerson presents another opportunity to climb. NMH, ranked fourth, faces third-ranked Tilton in a Sunday afternoon showdown. We'll see two elite 2026 point guards go at it in Tilton's Bela Cucuta (Newington, Conn.) and NMH's Olivia Fleming (Windham, Conn.), plus more fireworks on the wing with Colleen Phiri (Haverhill, Mass.) of Tilton and Grace Minihane (Colorado Springs, Colo.) of NMH.
4. This is a great opportunity for me to get first looks at schools on the cusp our our top 10. That includes a great matchup between outside contenders Darrow and Sacred Heart on Friday, as well as Choate vs. Storm King Sunday morning. Rivers, occupying the No. 10 spot right now, gets challenged three times by Choate, Greenwich Country Day and Hoosac.
5. How many scholarships get offered following the weekend? It's less common to see them during the winter season, but we've had a couple of offers publicized recently. New Hampton's Elyse Ngenda (Bedford, N.H.) picked one up from Northwestern and Lafayette offered St. Andrew's forward Molly Sisson (Rochester, Mass.). With so many college coaches focused on this tournament — plus the holiday time off coming up — it wouldn't be surprising for a flurry of offers to follow for the Nickerson Showcase's top standouts.
