Update: Norcross event shortened to 2 games at SPX

The weather storm made the event a two-game deal instead –

St. Pius stepped up to play host, as Gwinnett County canceled all sporting events at its facilities on Saturday and prevented its schools (ie, Norcross) from participating.

St. John’s of Washington, D.C., beat St. Francis 68-52. Maryland signee Anthony Cowan scored 39 points and made seven 3-pointers. Kobi Simmons scored 20 points and had six rebounds and three assists for St. Francis.

Allderice beat St. Pius 69-52. James Jackson scored 32 points for Allderice, the No. 1-ranked Class 4A team in Pennsylvania. Kerney Lane scored 14 points for St. Pius and surpassed 1,000 for his career.

Original story:

Three nationally ranked out-of-state boys basketball teams will be at Norcross on Saturday for the five-game Peachtree Corners Invitational that will also feature Georgia’s two biggest recruits, Kobi Simmons of St. Francis and Wendell Carter of Pace Academy.

Simmons, recently named a McDonald’s All-American, and St. Francis will play USA Today’s No. 9 team, St. John’s of Washington, D.C., at 6:30 p.m. St. John's star Anthony Cowan is committed to Maryland. St. Francis is Georgia's two-time defending Class A private-school champion.

Pace and Carter, a 6-foot-10 forward who is the No. 1 junior prospect in the country, are pitted against High Point Christian of North Carolina, the No. 17 team in MaxPreps’ national rankings, at 8 p.m. High Point's top player is Edrice Adebayo, who is committed to Kentucky.

The third nationally ranked team is Providence Day, which is No. 23 in MaxPreps’ computer rankings. Providence, led by Tennessee recruit Grant Williams, plays Friendship Collegiate of Washington at 3:30 p.m.

Other Georgia teams playing are host Norcross (vs. Allderdice, the No. 1-ranked team in Pennsylvania's Class 4A, at 5 p.m.) and St. Pius (vs. Mountain Brook, Ala., at 2 p.m.). Norcross is No. 2 in Georgia's Class AAAAAA. St. Pius is No. 3 in AAA.

The event, previously called the Hilton Invitational, is in its 10th season.

"We are excited to continue to provide Georgia's basketball fans the opportunity to see some of the nation's most talented teams and players,'' Norcross coach Jesse McMillan said. "We do everything in our power to make it the best high school basketball showcase in the Southeast and we feel that this year's field shows that. We are grateful to host and we look forward to a great day of games on Saturday."

Schedule:

2 p.m. - St. Pius vs. Mountain Brook (Ala.)

3:30 p.m. - Providence Day (NC) vs. Friendship Collegiate (D.C.)

5 p.m. - Norcross vs. Allderdice (Pa.)

6:30 p.m. - Saint Francis vs. St. John’s College (D.C.)

8 p.m. - Pace Academy vs. High Point Christian (N.C.)

For more on some of the top players, see the Peachtree Corners Invitational.