2004 - The Inaugural Year

In the fall of 2003, Mesa District Athletic Director Dr. Steve Hogen made a proposal to the ASU Athletic Department including AD Gene Smith to host four high school basketball games at Wells Fargo Arena on the Martin Luther King Jr. Holiday. Along with the high school games, the event would honor individuals who have helped to unify their schools or community and showcase the individual talents of high school students through the singing of the National Anthem and half-time presentations. Though the focus of the day would be the games themselves, it was an opportunity to honor the legacy of Dr. King and create an exciting event for high school athletics in a collegiate venue.  By the time Dr. Hogen had made it to the lobby, ASU officials had enthusiastically agreed to host the event.

The original committee consisted of Dr. Hogen, City of Mesa Recreation Coordinator Marc A. Beasley, Mesa MLK Committee member John Goodie, and Desert Vista AD Roseyn Hood. ASU Coach CharliTurner-Thorne and Channel 12 sportscaster Bruce Cooper were on board as advisors.

Four girls games were played in the first year. Phoenix St. Mary's beat Gilbert Highland and went on to win the state championship beating another MLK participant Phoenix Desert Vista. State Player of the Year Sybil Dosty of Tucson Salpointe led her team to victory over Phoenix South Mountain.

Attendance was estimated at around 2500 fans. Cox TV broadcast the final two games live. Halftime honorees were presented awards from such notables as ASU Coach Charli Turner-Thorne and Olympic Gold Medalist Stacy Dragila. The inaugural MLK Basketball Classic was deemed a success with great newspaper coverage of the games as well as a couple of local TV stations.

2004 YEAR ONE: