By SCOTT SANDSBERRY
YAKIMA HERALD-REPUBLIC

When it comes to marketing appeal, suffice it to say that the Tourneytown.com Shootout has had a serendipitous run. And Monday's third edition of the SunDome's Martin Luther King Day basketball extravaganza is keeping that streak alive.

Two years ago, the inaugural Shootout had the uncanny timing of being the game in which Sunnyside Christian's Lance Den Boer became the state's all-time leading scorer. And former Naches star (and now coach) Ron Deaton, the Valley's all-time scoring champ until Den Boer came along, was on hand for a center-court presentation.

Last year's second-annual event boasted the best nonconference game on this side of the state -- for years. Rams coach Jim Berndt, given an opportunity to face reigning 1A champion Brewster -- a the kind of dangerous smaller-school opponent many coaches steer clear of -- essentially said, Bring 'em on. The Rams won, 55-45, before a crowd of 4,000 screaming fans who knew they were watching something special. It would be Bears' only loss of the season.

This year, the lineup -- from top to bottom -- might be the best yet. The fact that the eight games will be climaxed by a boys showdown of crosstown rivals (and Big Nine Conference frontrunners) Eisenhower and Davis is simply icing on a very delectable cake.

The girls

9 a.m. -- Riverside Christian (8-3) vs. Kittitas (11-1). The Coyotes placed fourth and third in the past two Class B state tourneys -- and last year that put them one place higher than RC. Both teams are ranked, Kittitas No. 7 and the Crusaders No. 9.

10:30 a.m. -- Eisenhower (9-0) vs. Davis (5-4). Ike, ranked fourth, has a great shot of being the first Cadet girls team to make it to state since 1993.

Noon -- Napavine (11-1) vs. Brewster (8-3). This matchup was set up on the first day of the 2004 state tournament, when both coaches approached Tourneytown officials wanting to face each other. It proved to be a tremendous matchup: Napavine is ranked No. 1, Brewster No. 2.

1:30 p.m. -- West Valley (9-3) vs. Enumclaw (5-6). The Rams are aiming for their ninth straight state-tournament trip; Enumclaw has made it to the 4A tourney four of the past five years.

The boys

3:15 p.m. -- Brewster (10-1) vs. Toledo (11-1). No. 4 Toledo's Artem Wallace, a 6-foot-8 power forward from St. Petersburg, Russia, has already signed with Washington. For second-ranked Brewster, junior Michael Taylor (20.3 ppg), another future Division I player, is nursing a sore ankle that has forced him to miss two straight games. But 6-2 senior guard Hawkins Gebbers (22.8) has more than picked up the slack, scoring 73 points during those two games.

5 p.m. -- West Valley (9-4) vs. Enumclaw (6-5). The Rams, a perennial 3A power, face a 4A state-tourney regular in Enumclaw, which has been in four of the past six 4A tournaments, placing third in 2002.

7 p.m. -- Grandview (8-2) vs. Chelan (7-4). This is a rematch of the 2002 state-championship game; Chelan placed fourth last year. Need we say more?

8:30 p.m. -- Eisenhower (9-1) vs. Davis (8-0). Gee, lessee ... the two best teams in the Big Nine, crosstown rivals, playing in the SunDome. We'll make this as simple as we can: Don't be late.

Of course, if you're a fan of good prep basketball, you'll be plenty early. There's something worth seeing all day long.