Looking for an interesting summer diversion?

How about climbing out of the pool, slipping into your flip-flops and bouncing on over to the air-conditioned gyms at Phoenix Thunderbird, Glendale Deer Valley and Gilbert Highland for some quality prep basketball this week?

A girls’ tournament will wrap up at Thunderbird on Tuesday (June 25) and Wednesday (June 26) nights.

Teams still in the running as of Monday night (June 24) were Phoenix Moon Valley, Phoenix Horizon, Avondale Westview, Scottsdale Desert Mountain, Phoenix Washington, Scottsdale Saguaro, Thunderbird, Phoenix North Canyon, Phoenix Xavier Prep, Phoenix North, Deer Valley, Glendale Raymond S. Kellis, Cave Creek Cactus Shadows and Phoenix Paradise Valley.

The girls’ Desert Hoops Shootout begins Wednesday at Deer Valley and runs through Sunday (June 30), with championship games on the last day. Some schools will have two or three teams.

Teams in the Gold Division are Phoenix Arcadia, Anthem Boulder Creek, Peoria Liberty, Goodyear Millennium, Tolleson and Westview.

Teams in the Black Division are Deer Valley, Miami, Phoenix Christian, Surprise Shadow Ridge, Cave Creek Cactus Shadows, El Mirage Dysart, Phoenix Sandra Day O’Connor, Peoria Sunrise Mountain, Phoenix Greenway, Millennium, Gilbert Williams Field and Surprise Willow Canyon.

Teams in the Green Division are Boulder Creek, Liberty, Tempe Marcos de Niza, Millennium, Deer Valley and North Canyon.

Highland, fresh off hosting the 3^rd Annual Prime Time tournament last weekend, will be busy again Thursday (June 27) through Saturday (June 29) with the 7^th Annual Best in Basketball Summer Invitational for boys.

Teams are Goodyear Desert Edge, Gilbert Christian, Chandler Hamilton, Gilbert Highland, Tempe Marcos de Niza, Phoenix Mountain Pointe, Chandler, Vail Cienega, Tempe Corona del Sol, Phoenix Pinnacle, Regis Jesuit (Colo.), Tempe, Anthem Boulder Creek, Glendale Cactus, Mesa Red Mountain, Phoenix St. Mary’s, Chandler Seton Catholic, Phoenix Sunnyslope, Chandler Basha, Laveen Cesar Chavez, Mesa Desert Ridge, Phoenix Horizon, Peoria Liberty and Tempe McClintock.

Boys hoops 2013-14

Look out for some of the best basketball this state has seen in a long time.

Arizona appears to be busting at the seams with top players. It seems like everywhere you looked at the Prime Time last weekend, there was a bona-fide star.

Start with Casey Benson of two-time defending champ Corona del Sol, which won the Prime Time. There was Highland’s Jake Toolson, Desert Mountain’s Rolando Rhymes, Mesa Mountain View’s Payton Dastrup and Phoenix Pinnacle’s Dorian Pickens.

Hamilton rules again

Led by coach Steve Belles, defending Division I football champion Chandler Hamilton came away with the title of the Arizona Football Coaches Association’s 7-on-7 passing tournament at the Surprise Stadium Complex last weekend.

And if that wasn’t enough, the Huskies’ linemen took the Big Man competition.

The Big Man is almost as interesting to watch as the passing. Testosterone flows as the guys up front grunt and groan while pulling and pushing weighted sleds and trying to outdo each other in the bench press.