GREENSBORO, N.C. -- A Triad holiday sports tradition kicks off its 41st year, showcasing some of the Triad's best high school basketball.
The HAECO Invitational Tournament runs Monday, December 26 to Wednesday, December 28 at the Greensboro Coliseum Complex. The tournament features 8 men's and women's basketball teams from the Triad.
The HAECO Invitational was founded in 1976 as the Little 4. At that time, the Big Four Atlantic Coast Conference schools, Duke, N.C. State, UNC-Chapel Hill and Wake Forest, competed in the Big 4 Tournament in the Greensboro Coliseum.
The HAECO Invitational was created to mirror the tournament that showcased North Carolina's ACC teams and raise funds for the participating high schools' athletic programs. In 1978, the tournament expanded to eight teams with Ragsdale, High Point Andrews, High Point Central and Thomasville High School joining the original four. The next two years, in 1979 and '80, the tournament returned to its original four schools before expanding to eight teams representing schools in Guilford County permanently in 1981.
The women's side of the tournament began in 1980.
The HAECO Invitational is now widely considered the most successful holiday basketball tournament in North Carolina.
Participating schools this year include Dudley High School, Greensboro Day School, Grimsley High School, Northern Guilford, Northwest Guilford, Page High School, Ragsdale High School and Smith High School.
Games start at 3:30 p.m. Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.
HAECO Invitational tickets are available through the participating schools or at the Greensboro Coliseum Box Office. Tournament books containing tickets for all games are $15. Single-session tickets are $7 for the opening and semi-final rounds and $10 for championship day. Single session tickets are only available at the Greensboro Coliseum Special Events Center box office.
For a more complete look at tournament history, you can visit http://www.haecoinvitational.com/history-results/.