Smiley HS competes in “Houston vs Nation” basketball tournament

Smiley High School basketball team was invited to play in the Houston vs. The Nation national tournament at Aldine’s Campbell Center over the Christmas Holiday.
Smiley played in two games, defeating Seven Lakes in Thursday night’s game, 74-58. In their second game, played on Saturday, they lost to Kingwood 55-60.
Smiley’s Augustine Rubit was the leading scorer in Thursday’s game, with 32 points, followed by Johnathon Simmions 14, and Benny Easter 12. For Seven Lakes, Brandon Provost scored 25, Jimmy Abraham 12.They had a strong second quarter, scoring 21 points and held the lead the whole game.
In Saturday’s game against champion Kingwood, they scored well, and held on to a narrow defeat. Jonathan Simmons had 20 points, and Augustine Rubit 18.
The Academy National Tournament had a new name this year, but the quality of basketball play was as high a level as in the past.
Five top high school teams from around the nation, and 14 from around Houston, competed in the Houston vs. The Nation Tournament over the holiday weekend at Aldine’s Campbell Center.
Top seeds in the new pool format were Aldine High School and Oak Hill Academy, ranked No. 1 in the nation.
Area teams of interest besides Aldine included Kingwood, Bellaire, and Smiley. The venue was sponsored by Vision Sports, Nike and Foot Locker.
The Houston vs. The Nation tournament saw a big upset after Cy Springs knocked off Montverde Academy on Friday, and then Jack Yates Lions pulled the weekend double, beating Oak Hill on Friday, following the big win with an upset of No. 1 St. Patrick’s 66-60 Saturday night.
With upsets and action galore, the Houston vs. The Nation tournament exceeded all expectations for over 4000 fans.

Scores of local interest included Thursday:
Smiley 74 Seven Lakes 58
Kingwood 41 DeLaSalle 30
Aldine 62 Hastings 76
Friday’s Scores:
Yates 82 Oak Hill 80
Kingwood 47 Seven Lakes 35
St. Thomas 81 Westfield 78
Madison 67 St. Patrick 79
Saturday’s Scores:
Bellaire 59 Aldine 46
Kingwood 60 Smiley 55
Yates 66 St. Patrick 60
Texas Championship:
Kingwood 47 Hastings 38