The finest high school basketball talent across the state are preparing for the tip-off of Pasadena ISD’s fifth annual McDonald’s Texas Invitational Basketball Tournament.

Every year, the competition gets tougher and this year won’t be different as state-ranked boys’ teams including Klein Collins, San Antonio Madison, Desoto, Kingwood, Cypress Springs, La Porte and West Monroe, La. and top girls’ teams such as Cypress Fairbanks, San Antonio Warren, Desoto, Mansfield Summit, Pflugerville, San Antonio Madison and Dickinson will bring their best to Pasadena ISD’s courts Nov. 15-17.

“Our objective from the very start five years ago was to get the best teams we could get to come to Pasadena,” said tournament chairman Ben Meador. “We want great competition because that’s what brings the fans out. We are very pleased these teams choose to participate.”

One team heating up the court is Klein Collins High School, which is home to one of the best point guards in the state, Demetri Goodson. He said his team is excited about participating.

“This tournament will bring us closer together as a team and help us prepare for district play and playoffs,” Goodson said. “I think we’re going to see some really good talent at this tournament, and we look forward to the competition.”

In three years on Klein Collins' varsity, Goodson has been part of 83 wins, including last year’s 29 wins. He was an all-state selection and Most Valuable Player of the conference. Goodson was also named to the first-team All-District, first-team All-State and first-team All-Region teams last year. He recently signed with Gongaza University.

Klein Collins took the tournament’s consolation championship in the boys’ gold division last year, and the team finished last season with a 29-10 overall record. The team also advanced to the final eight in the State 5A tournament, the largest classification in Texas.

The Tigers’ head coach Tim Schumacher said the tournament is a great experience for everyone involved. “The hospitality is great, the competition is great and we get to play a lot of games,” he said. “The talent is as good as any tournament in the state. The people take such pride in providing us with the best experience possible, and Ben and his staff have done a tremendous job running this tournament and showcasing the city of Pasadena and the school district.”

Meador said this is a good tournament for teams across the state to be a part of because of the college recruiters in the Houston area, the tournament format, the talent and the trophies given to the champions.

“The level of competition is as strong as you will see anywhere,” Meador said. “The way our format has been structured allows teams to play against their level of competition. Our trophies are also very unique as they are replicas of the San Jacinto Monument and made out of the material used to construct the original monument.”

The tournament has grown to be one of the best high school basketball tournaments in the state featuring top ranked teams in both the 48-team boys’ bracket and 32-team girls’ division. This year’s tournament will end with six teams walking away with the unique trophies with champions in both the boys’ Divisions I and II gold, silver and bronze brackets. The girls’ Divisions I and II will also hold champions.

Although the tournament showcases Texas’ premier high school basketball talent, the McDonald’s Texas Invitational is also the primary fundraiser for Pasadena ISD’s Education Foundation. The foundation supports students by providing grants to teachers for innovative educational programs. Twice a year, foundation board members surprise winning campuses with grants up to $5,000 through the foundation’s Dream Makers event. Over the past three years, the tournament has brought more than a quarter of a million dollars to the foundation. This year’s goal is to raise $100,000.

“We expect 30,000 or more fans at this year’s games, the level of competition will produce some great high school basketball and the end result will allow us to reach our goal of $100,000,” Meador said. “We committed to that goal last year, and we know it will be achieved. This will help many of our young people in this community advance their education, which is the greatest benefit of all because they are our future.”