Matchups announced for MLK Classic basketball event hosted by De La Salle Athletics

High School On SI powered by SBLive presents the 27th annual showcase in Northern California

The 27th Annual MLK Classic will be held on January 20, 2025 at De La Salle High School in Concord. /

The teams and matchups for the annual MLK Classic hosted by De La Salle Athletics are set.

High School On SI is partnering with DLS Athletics to present the 27th MLK Classic. It's scheduled for Monday, January 20 in Concord (Calif.).

There are six boys games scheduled and the day will end with a girls matchup. Games will be played at De La Salle's gymnasium on campus.

“We are excited to host another edition of the MLK Classic at De La Salle High School," De La Salle Assistant Athletic Director and head basketball coach Marcus Schroeder said. "As always, we are proud to host the best teams in Northern California and look forward to welcoming some of the top teams out of the region — Sunnyslope from Arizona, Riverside Poly and St. Joseph from Santa Maria. It will be another exciting day of basketball featuring some of the high school’s best players in the country.”

The day-long event tips off at 9 a.m. with San Ramon Valley against Bishop O'Dowd and ends with Salesian facing Carondelet at 7 p.m. in the girls game. Carondelet High School — an all girls school — is across the street from the De La Salle campus.

Host De La Salle will square off with Sunnyslope of Arizona in a 4 p.m. matchup. 

The Spartans, who finished 25-6 overall last season, are led by senior wing Alec Blair, who is the No. 6 ranked player in California for the Class of 2025, according to 247Sports. 

Alec Blair's midrange game is one of the bet in the state, if not the country. The 6-6 incoming senior wing committed to the University of Oklahoma in June. / Photo: Dennis Lee

Sunnyslope, which finished 20-8 last season, features 6-foot-10 sophomore center Darious Wabbington.

In one of the top matchups of the day, Modesto Christian faces St. Joseph of Santa Maria at 2:30 p.m. St. Joseph is led by senior forward Tounde Yessoufou, who is ranked the No. 17 recruit in the Class of 2025 by 247Sports. Yessoufou committed to Baylor on Wednesday.

This is the third straight year St. Joseph has been a part of the event and Yessoufou has been front and center in the action. Last season during a 69-66 win over Branson-Ross, the chiseled 6-5 wing scored 16 of his team-high 30 points in the fourth quarter to go along with 18 rebounds and four blocks for the game.

St. Joseph high-flying Tounde Yessoufou goes in high for a breakaway dunk during his team's 68-67 overtime loss to Modesto Christian in the 2023 MLK Game. Yessoufou and his team will have a chance for sweet revenge with the teams play again in the 2:30 p.m. game of the MLK Classic at De La Salle on Jan. 20, 2025. / Photo: Dennis Lee

In 2023, Yessoufou had 29 points, seven rebounds, seven steals and four assists in a 68-67 overtime loss to Modesto Christian. In his remarkable three-year, 97-game career, Yessoufou has averaged 29 points, 11.0 rebounds, 2.8 steals and 1.7 blocks per game. He's made 57% of his shots in that stretch, 1,148 for 1,998, including 144 of 463 on 3-pointers.

Graphic by Jesus Baca

For more information and to purchase tickets for the MLK Classic, follow De La Salle Athletics @dlsathletics