Local and national girls and boys teams from across the country have been announced for the 10th Annual Chicago Elite Classic (CEC) Basketball Showcase powered by Nike. CEC will take place Friday, December 3 and Saturday, December 4, 2021, at the Credit Union 1 Arena (formerly UIC).

Recently announced teams include Chicago Public Schools’ Kenwood Academy, Simeon Career Academy, and Whitney Young Magnet high schools, as well as, Chicago-area suburban high school teams Fenwick, Oak Park, River Forest, Joliet West, and Thornton Township. See below the full schedule for the 10th Annual Chicago Elite Classic Basketball Showcase powered by Nike.

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 3:

            BOYS BASKETBALL:

  • Oak Park River Forest vs. Fenwick – 6:00pm
  • Taft vs. Lane Tech – 9:00pm

GIRLS BASKETBALL:

  • Butler vs. Phillips – 4:30pm
  • Homewood-Flossmoor vs. Whitney Young – 7:30pm

 SATURDAY, DECEMBER 4:

BOYS BASKETBALL:

  • Ignatius vs. Chaminade (MO) – 1:30pm
  • North Lawndale vs. Vashon (MO) – 3:00pm
  • Rita vs. Thornton – 4:30pm
  • Kenwood vs. Evangel Christian (NY) – 6:00pm
  • Simeon vs. Mater DEI (CA) – 7:30pm
  • Whitney Young vs. Gonzaga (DC) – 9:00pm

GIRLS BASKETBALL:

  • Simeon vs. Vashon (MO) – 10:30am
  • Kenwood vs. Joliet West – 12:00pm

As the tournament celebrates its 10th Year Anniversary, Nike returns as the presenting sponsor. In addition to Nike, the tournament will also be sponsored by long-time signature sponsors Zing Health and Ariel Investments. We are happy to announce that

Complete Care CoCo5, Complete Care, and Footlocker Chicago have signed on as major supporters of this year’s classic as well.

“We are beyond grateful for all of the supporting partners of the 2021 Chicago Elite Classic,” says Malik T. Murray, SVP, Head of Business Development Institutional Marketing for Ariel Investments and Chairman of the Chicago Elite Classic Advisory Board. “With our sponsors’ support, we are able to continue to host one of the most exciting basketball tournaments not just in Chicago, but the country as well.”

“The Chicago Elite Classic is more than a basketball tournament, it prepares young men and women to step up to another level of competition and mastery on a big stage,” said Dr. Eric E. Whitaker, founder and CEO of Medicare Advantage plan company Zing Health and longtime Chicago Elite Classic Advisory board member. “Playing basketball was transformative for me at St. Rita—it gave me that drive for excellence that I continue to draw upon both professionally and personally. It’s gratifying that the Classic has reached its milestone 10th anniversary with Zing Health as a signature sponsor.”

Tickets are available for sale at all local participating schools, and also at the UIC box office (Credit Union 1 Arena). You can also go to www.ticketmaster.com and/or

www.chicagoeliteclassic.com to purchase tickets as well. For the health and safety of all fans and participants, everyone must wear masks and maintain social distancing regardless of vaccination status. Vaccinations will be available on-site for interested unvaccinated patrons only.

For more information on the Chicago Elite Classic, please visit the CEC website. You can also follow all CECrelated events on several social media platforms including

Instagram @ChicagoEliteClassic, Twitter @ChiEliteClassic and Facebook.