Participating and competing in holiday basketball tournaments means a great deal to the players.
They embrace the tradition and get excited about the big crowds that fill the host gymnasiums with family and friends.
At Old Forge, the Anthony D. “Badger” Marseco Memorial Tournament tugs at their heartstrings, making for an emotional weekend during one of the most celebrated times of the year.
For the 17th time, the event will bring together eight teams motivated to take home the title. They play hard in honor of Marseco, a beloved former star athlete at Old Forge High School and former assistant coach at Wyoming Area, who was killed in a 1995 motorcycle accident while a student at Wilkes University.
A quadrupleheader is scheduled for Saturday at Old Forge High School. The girls semifinals will start the weekend as Pittston Area faces rival Wyoming Area at 3 p.m. Hanover Area plays the host Lady Devils at 4:30 p.m.
The boys semifinals follow with Northwest Area playing Pittston Area at 6:30 p.m. and Wyoming Area playing Old Forge at 8 p.m.
“It’s special because (Marseco) represented a big part of the community,” said Cameron Parker, an Old Forge senior guard and All-Region player. “The way that he played with his hustle and heart. That’s the way we want to play to represent him.”
Honoring Marseco started with the Badger Game between Old Forge and Wyoming Area. This year’s game is the 26th meeting, and Old Forge holds a 19-6 lead in the matchups. The game was paused from 2016 to 2020 and renewed in 2021.
This year’s matchup between Wyoming Area and Old Forge is a marquee game in District 2. Wyoming Area is 7-0 in nonleague games with wins over North Pocono, Mid Valley and Lakeland from the Lackawanna League.
Luke Kopetchny leads the Wyoming Valley Conference in scoring with a 27.9 points-per-game average. Mitchell Rusinchak averages 12.3 points per game for the Warriors.
Old Forge (4-2) returns four starters from last season’s team that reached the PIAA Class 2A quarterfinals and won the District 2 Class 2A championship. Parker leads the Blue Devils in scoring, averaging 14.5 points per game. Logan Fanning contributes 13.8 points per game, and from beyond the arc, Cam Krushnowski is averaging 1.8 3-pointers per game, and Arthur Askew is averaging 1.7.
“Wyoming Area has been playing really well,” Parker said. “It means so much to play in this tournament, and we are just going to have to play together like we always do.”
The consolation and championship games are set for Monday. The girls games are at 3 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. The boys games are at 6:30 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Last season, Parker scored 21 points, and Fanning had 13 in a win over Wyoming Area in the Badger game. Then, the Blue Devils added the tournament crown with a 62-47 win over Northwest Area. Ryan DeMarco led the way with 19 points, and Fanning had 16.
In the girls tournament, Pittston Area beat Wyoming Area, 51-24, in the title game.
“Being brought up in Old Forge, it is nice to be a part of the tournament,” Parker said. “It feels good to come to our home court and win it. We want to keep our streaks going.”
This year’s busy holiday tournament season gets started Friday.
In boys basketball, the Peter Turonis/NBT Bank Holiday Classic is at Carbondale Area High School. Defending champion Valley View plays Lakeland at 5 p.m., and Mid Valley faces the host, Carbondale Area, at 6:30 p.m. in the semifinals. The consolation and championship games are Sunday.
The Honesdale Jaycees tournament opens with the semifinals. Defending champion Wallenpaupack plays East Stroudsburg South in a rematch of last season’s final at 6:30 p.m. Western Wayne plays the host, Honesdale, at 8 p.m. at the Wayne-Highlands Middle School.
In the girls Honesdale Jaycees Tournament, Western Wayne plays Wallenpaupack at 5:45 p.m., and Forest City is at Honesdale at 7:15 p.m. at the Honesdale High School gymnasium.
The consolation and championship games in the Jaycees Tournaments are set for Saturday.
Also Friday, the girls Taylor Lions Tournament will hold semifinal games at Riverside. Lackawanna Trail plays North Pocono at 6 p.m., and West Scranton faces Riverside at 7:30 p.m. The consolation and final are Sunday.
The boys Taylor Lions Tournament is scheduled for Saturday. Lackawanna Trail plays Forest City at 6 p.m., and North Pocono is at Riverside at 7:30 p.m. The consolation and final are Monday.
The Lynett Memorial Tournament is scheduled for Saturday and Monday at the Lackawanna College Student Union.
In the girls semifinals, Holy Cross faces Dunmore at 1 p.m., and Scranton plays defending champion Scranton Prep at 2:30 p.m.
Scranton plays Scranton Prep at 6 p.m., and Dunmore challenges defending champion Holy Cross at 7:30 p.m. in the boys tournament.
Consolation and final games are Monday.
Also Saturday, there is a quadrupleheader of action at Montrose for the Susquehanna Reddon-Hoffman girls tournament and the Susquehanna County Holiday boys tournament.
Blue Ridge plays Elk Lake at 1 p.m., and Susquehanna plays the host, Montrose, at 2:45 p.m. in the girls semifinals. The matchups are the same for the boys, with the times of 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m.
The consolation and championship games are Sunday.
The Lou Camoni Memorial Tournament in girls basketball starts Saturday. Mid Valley plays Carbondale Area at 5 p.m., and Lakeland plays the host, Valley View, at 6:30 p.m. in the semifinals.
The consolation and final are Monday.
Delaware Valley hosts girls and boys tournaments Sunday and Monday. Both Delaware Valley teams play Port Jervis, New York, in their opening games.
HOLIDAY BOYS BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTS
FRIDAY
53rd Peter Turonis/NBT Holiday Classic
at Carbondale Area High School
Valley View vs. Lakeland, 5 p.m.
Mid Valley at Carbondale Area, 6:30 p.m.
65th Honesdale Jaycees Tournament
at Wayne-Highlands Middle School
Wallenpaupack vs. East Stroudsburg, 6:30 p.m.
Western Wayne at Honesdale, 8 p.m.
SATURDAY
74th Lynett Memorial Tournament
at Lackawanna College Student Union
Scranton vs. Scranton Prep, 6 p.m.
Dunmore vs. Holy Cross, 7:30 p.m.
38th Taylor Lions Tournament
at Riverside High School
Lackawanna Trail vs. Forest City, 6 p.m.
North Pocono at Riverside, 7:30 p.m.
65th Honesdale Jaycees Tournament
at Wayne-Highlands Middle School
Consolation, 6:30 p.m.
Championship, 8 p.m.
Susquehanna County Christmas Tournament
at Montrose High School
Elk Lake vs. Blue Ridge, 4:30 p.m.
Susquehanna at Montrose, 6 p.m.
Anthony “Badger” Marseco Tournament
at Old Forge High School
Pittston Area vs. Northwest Area, 6:30 p.m.
Wyoming Area at Old Forge, 8 p.m.
SUNDAY
53rd Peter Turonis/NBT Bank Holiday Classic
at Carbondale Area High School
Consolation, 5 p.m.
Championship, 7 p.m.
Susquehanna County Christmas Tournament
at Montrose High School
Consolation, 2:45 p.m.
Championship, 6 p.m.
Delaware Valley Tournament
Port Jervis, NY at Delaware Valley, 6:45 p.m.
MONDAY
74th Lynett Memorial Tournament
at Lackawanna College Student Union
Consolation, 2:30 p.m.
Championship, 7:30 p.m.
38th Taylor Lions Tournament
at Riverside High School
Consolation, 6 p.m.
Championship, 7:30 p.m.
Delaware Valley Tournament
Consolation, 5 p.m.
Championship game, 6:45 p.m.
HOLIDAY GIRLS BASKETBALL TOURNAMENTS
FRIDAY
38th Taylor Lions Tournament
at Riverside High School
Lackawanna Trail vs. North Pocono, 6 p.m.
West Scranton at Riverside, 7:30 p.m.
39th Honesdale Jaycees Tournament
at Honesdale High School
Western Wayne vs. Wallenpaupack, 5:45 p.m.
Forest City at Honesdale, 7:15 p.m.
SATURDAY
Lynett Memorial Tournament
at Lackawanna College Student Union
Holy Cross vs. Dunmore, 1 p.m.
Scranton vs. Scranton Prep, 2:30 p.m.
Lou Camoni Tournament
at Valley View High School
Mid Valley vs. Carbondale Area, 5 p.m.
Lakeland at Valley View, 6:30 p.m.
Honesdale Jaycees Tournament
at Honesdale High School
Consolation, 5:45 p.m.
Championship, 7:15 p.m.
Anthony “Badger” Marseco Tournament
at Old Forge High School
Pittston Area vs Wyoming Area, 3 p.m.
Hanover Area at Old Forge, 4:30 p.m.
Susquehanna County Reddon-Hoffman Christmas Tournament
at Montrose High School
Blue Ridge vs. Elk Lake, 1 p.m.
Susquehanna at Montrose, 2:45 p.m.
SUNDAY
Delaware Valley Holiday Tournament
Delaware Valley vs. Port Jervis, NY, 3:15 p.m.
Taylor Lions Tournament
at Riverside High School
Consolation, 6 p.m.
Championship, 7:30 p.m.
Susquehanna County Reddon-Hoffman Christmas Tournament
at Montrose High School
Consolation, 1 p.m.
Championship, 4:30 p.m.
MONDAY
Lynett Memorial Tournament
at Lackawanna College Student Union
Consolation, 1 p.m.
Championship, 6 p.m.
Parkland Holiday Tournament
Abington Heights vs. Wilson, noon
Liberty at Parkland, 1:30 p.m.
Delaware Valley Holiday Tournament
Consolation, 1:30 p.m.
Championship, 3:15 p.m.
Lou Camoni Tournament
at Valley View High School
Consolation, 5 p.m.
Championship, 6:30 p.m.
Anthony “Badger” Marseco Tournament
at Old Forge High School
Consolation, 3 p.m.
Championship, 4:30 p.m.