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Summary
Kentucky's all-class boys' state championship — 16 regional champions advance to Rupp Arena in Lexington for four days of single-elimination basketball. Multi-year venue deal with Rupp Arena was renewed in 2024.
What makes this tournament distinct
Single-class format — every school in Kentucky regardless of size plays the same bracket. Rupp Arena is one of the most recognizable basketball venues anywhere.
Who it fits
Best for: Kentucky member schools. Single-class format means a true 'best in the state' champion, not a class-by-class champion.
Tradeoffs: Single-class means small schools rarely cut down nets. Closed state series.
Founded in 1947, Kentucky's oldest regular-season high school basketball tournament. Run as Louisville's biggest in-season showcase, with both boys' and girls' brackets. Has occasionally been delayed by weather (snow pushed the boys' bracket back in recent years).
Held at Fairdale High School in the Louisville area. 44th edition in 2025 (founded 1982). 16-team field, mix of top Kentucky programs and out-of-state national-tier teams. Sponsored by Chad Gardner Law since recent years. Streams on NFHS Network.
Three-day national showcase at Reed Conder Gymnasium in Benton, Kentucky. Pulls top high school programs from 10 states. Booker, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Durant, Tre Johnson, and Derrick Rose all played here before the NBA. Affiliated with Nike's EYBL.
Alaska Airlines Center on the UAA campus. Two weekends — 1A/2A first (March 11-14), then 3A/4A (March 18-21). NFHS Network livestreams every game. Branded as ASAA March Madness, hosted by ASAA and Anchorage School District.
Hot Springs. Arkansas Activities Association state finals, classes 1A through 6A boys and girls, all played at Bank OZK Arena over three days in mid-March. Free live streaming through Arkansas TV makes this one of the easiest state finals in the region to follow.
Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, two-day final weekend. The Open Division boys final is the most loaded state title game in the country most years — you have to win your CIF section first, and the Open bracket pulls eight teams from those section champs. Eastvale Roosevelt won the 2025 Open over Archbishop Riordan; Brayden Burries dropped 44 in the final.
Denver. Colorado state finals for both boys and girls, classes 1A through 6A. Great 8 round opens the week, all six championship games run on the final Saturday at Denver Coliseum. Every game streams on NFHS Network.
CIAC moved finals to Mohegan Sun Arena and runs both boys and girls D-I through D-IV champion games over a single weekend. Public + private all together (CT doesn't separate them). Ellington won D-IV 2025 — their first state title in 53 years. Greenwich girls took D-I.
The Delaware Interscholastic Athletic Association crowns boys, girls, and unified basketball champions each March. The 2025 boys final saw No. 6 Sanford School upset No. 1 Dover 37-34 — typical of a small-state bracket where seeding doesn't carry as much weight as program continuity.
National Prep Tournament in Fort Walton Beach, Florida takes both high school and post-grad programs. Applications stay open through October 31. If you want a competitive early-March slot without invitation-only barriers, this is the one to apply for.