With some strong tournaments to go to and support throughout New York State such as the Josh Palmer Fund Holiday Inn Classic up just outside of Binghamton, or a few Downstate ones such as the Msgr. King Tournament and the Queens Jam Christmas Classic in New York City, there is a lot of basketball action to go see just after Christmas. Here though we are going to be focusing in on where some of the local New York teams will traveling to out of state this holiday season that many will want to keep an eye on.

Tournaments in states such as New Jersey, Delaware, and Maryland will place host to some Empire State teams just after Christmas here, but some New York teams will be going even further to states like North Carolina, South Carolina, Arkansas, Georgia and Arizona.

We will preview which teams are going where here as we chronicle 8 tournaments in 8 states where you will see New York teams suiting up and taking the court in as we dive into one of the busiest and most exciting times of the high school basketball year.

An impressive 8 teams from New York will be going down to Maryland starting on December 26th to take part in one of the biggest tournaments you will find anywhere in the country in the Governor's Challenge. Over 120 teams will pack into the Wicomico Youth & Civic Center in Salibury, with the following New York teams taking part.

Brooklyn Collegiate

The Lions, who are among the favorites this season in the PSAL Brooklyn AA, will make the trip to Maryland as they will play in the DMV Elite Showcase Bracket which means they will have set showcase names and not necessarily be part of a true bracket style tournament where a winner is crowned. Brooklyn Collegiate will open on. December 28th against Legacy Early College of South Carolina, then will get Lincoln Academy from Georgia on the 29th to close out their trip.

Wings Academy

As the longtime power of the PSAL Bronx AA, Wings is a proven commodity as one of New York's usual best and will head to the Governor's Challenge with a good amount of expectations. Much like Brooklyn Collegiate, Wings will be taking part in the DMV Elite Showcase Bracket and will have set pre-determined matchups with 3 matchups set to go for the Bronx school. On Wednesday December 26th Wings will take on Liberty Heights of North Carolina in a strong opening game, Abraham Lincoln of Pennsylvania will then be next on the 27th, before a date with Archbishop Carroll of Washington D.C. ends their Governor's Challenge run.

St. Peter's

Another team taking part in the DMV Elite Showcase Bracket are the Eagles out of Staten Island as they will head down as a team who is looking to make some noise in the CHSAA this season with a couple strong wins in league play already on their resume. St. Peter's will go down on December 26th and take on Smyrna from Delaware to open their Governor's Challenge run, before a game on Thursday the 27th against Potomac of Virginia finishes their trip down in the suburb of Washington D.C.

Abraham Lincoln

The Railsplitters are one of the more recognizable names in this season's Governor's Challenge as they will head down looking to bring an undefeated record back to the Coney Island school. A matchup with Lincoln Academy out of Georgia will start Abraham Lincoln's tournament off on December 27th as they as well will be taking part in the DMV Elite Showcase Bracket. Maret from Washington D.C. Will be the Railsplitters opponent on the 28th, and then it will be an all Lincoln matchup on Saturday the 29th when they play Abraham Lincoln out of Pennsylvania before heading back home.

Eagle Academy

Unlike the other teams before this Eagle Academy out of the Bronx, the defending PSAL Bronx Borough Champions, will be playing in a two-day true bracket style tournament at the Governor's Challenge, in Bracket #12 to be exact. Starting their event on Friday December 28th, Eagle will take on Highland School from Virginia in their opener before playing on the 29th against either Severn School out of Maryland or Bishop Sullivan Catholic from Virginia depending on their first-round result.

New Dorp

A team that is on top of the standings in the PSAL Staten Island Division are the Cougars as they have already gone on the road this season and knocked off perennial power Curtis to open a good number of eyes about their potential this year. Playing in Bracket #6, New Dorp will get play going at the Governor's Challenge on Wednesday December 26th when they will play New Era Academy from Baltimore, and then after that it will be the Cougars playing on the 27th as depending on if they will or lose will take on either Queen Anne's of Maryland or Kempsville or Virginia.

Susan Wagner

Another Staten Island school from the PSAL, the Falcons are another team that have opened the season strongly and could get themselves into position to be near the top of the PSAL Staten Island Division. A good showing here at the Governor's Challenge should only boost their confidence and momentum as Wagner will be a part of Bracket #8 that will see them open things up on Wednesday the 26th against JM Bennett which is one of the hosts schools out of Salisbury, MD. After that on the 27th it will be the Falcons squaring off with Edmonson-Westside of Baltimore or Georgetown Day of Washington D.C. depending on their opening game finish.

St. Joseph by the Sea

The final local New York team to be heading down to the Governor's Challenge is the fourth team out of Staten Island in St. Joe's by the Sea. The Vikings are a part of the CHSAA Class A Division and look to be among the more competitive teams there who could be in contention for a late playoff run if things keep going the way they are now. It will be Bracket #16 where you will find the Sea as they will begin their tournament on Friday, December 28th against Hereford of Maryland, with a date after that on the 29th against either Pocomoke of Maryland or Osbourn Park from Virginia.

In what is a strong eight team bracket, the Hoodie's House H.S. Hoops Classic down in Charlotte, NC will see three of their eight teams be from New York which means it will be inevitable that there will at some point over the course of the three days be a New York vs. New York battle down about 650 miles away from home. Long Island Lutheran is headed down as the early favorites to win the NYS Class AA Federation Tournament of Champions will begin their Hoodie's Tournament against Ardrey Kell of North Carolina on the 27th, before a semifinal showdown possibly against Msgr. Scanlan of the CHSAA in New York City as the Crusaders are on the same side of the bracket as LuHi and will open their play up with Holly Springs of North Carolina. The other New York team heading down is CHSAA Class A title contender Nazareth as they are on the opposite side of the bracket and will begin play with Northside Christian of North Carolina, with a semifinal date against South Atlanta of Georgia a strong possibility.

Another longtime powerhouse showcase that isn't played in bracket style is the Salm Dunk to the Beach on the beautiful ocean coast of Delaware in the city of Lewes. A pair of New York teams will be making the trek down I-95 to the Diamond State, and here is a look at the matchups they will see.

Bishop Loughlin

Undefeated so far on the season are the Lions who have asserted themselves as the favorites this season in the CHSAA Brooklyn/Queens Diocese, and quite possibly maybe the title favorites in the entire city as well. Bishop Loughlin will face Liberty out of Nevada to open the entire tournament in the early afternoon on December 27, and then a day later the 28th the Lions will finish out their two day stay in Delaware when they will play a Pennsylvania title contender in Archbishop Wood before heading back to NYC.

Albany Academy

Still unbeaten on the season as well are the Cadets from the Albany region as they come down to Delaware looking to make their mark on the national stage and show they are just among New York's best, but a team to talk about nationally as well. Albany Academy will get going on the 27th when they play longtime Washington D.C. power Gonzaga, and then after a day off in between the Cadets will play again on the 29th of December when they square off with Westtown School of Pennsylvania in a contest featuring a lot of high-level future Division 1 players on both sides of the floor.

One of the oldest and more prestigious tournaments you will find in the country is the Beach Ball Classic down on the South Carolina coast where teams get to enjoy a great time on and off the court by the ocean. A pair of New York teams will be challenging to win the Beach Ball title this season as the defending CHSAA and NYS Federation TOC Class AA champions in Archbishop Stepinac will be heading down. They are struggling so far this season with a 1-6 record but will hope to get on track starting on the 26th when they open up the tournament with Christian Academy of South Carolina. After that they will get either Florence of Mississippi or North Little Rock of Arkansas where depending on results the Crusaders will either game three or four games. Joining Stepinac down in South Carolina will be longtime CHSAA power in Christ the King as the Royals are beginning to hit their stride in league play will open the Beach Ball with Yates out of Texas on the 27th before a game with either Westchester (CA) or North Mecklenburg of North Carolina in what will be a true test for Christ the King. Unless it's a championship matchup the two CHSAA schools won't face off down in South Carolina as they are on the opposite sides of the bracket.

Over the course of four days the Skyline Classic will play host to teams from not just New York, but also New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, and Canada. It has become one of New Jersey's top holiday showcases, and again this year there looks to be a lot of great action to see with a pair of New York teams playing a pair of games each.

Thurgood Marshall Academy

Considered by many to be the favorites this season in the PSAL Manhattan AA, the Panthers will head to New Jersey looking to make some noise against teams from two different states. On Friday the 28th, TMA will be looking to down Frankford of Pennsylvania in their first of two games as they will next hit the court on the 29th when they compete against one of Delaware's best this season in Providence Christian Academy.

New Rochelle

A team with a lot of upside and potential, the young Huguenots are looking to build momentum heading into what will be a challenging Section 1 schedule this season as the Westchester power will open up their tournament on the 28th when they will play National Christian Academy out of Maryland, with a New York team that we don't usually talk about much awaiting New Rochelle on Sunday the 30th in Our Savior Lutheran, a non-New York Federation member team out of the Bronx.

These last three tournaments we are going to mention have just one New York team playing each but they are high quality tournaments that should see each be tested in. Heading to Arizona this year will be Thomas Jefferson as the Orange Wave will make the nearly 3,000-mile trip out to Mesa to take on three of Arizona's very best. Leaving to head out to the West Coast on Christmas night, Jefferson will get their showcase tournament going on the 26th when they take on Chaparral of Arizona. The next day will see the Orange Wave look to bring back another win when they square off against Deer Valley of Arizona, before a final game on the 29th will see Thomas Jefferson look to close things out in style and come back to Brooklyn on a good note when the face off with Perry, another strong Arizona power.

For years the must go to tournament was the King Cotton Holiday Classic down in Arkansas, but in recent years without funding the tournament went away. It's now back and looks to be better than ever with many of the best of the best from Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, and even California coming in this year. The New York representative will come from Buffalo as The Park School will be going to Arkansas this year and they will open the action on the 27th against the host school Pine Bluff out of Arkansas. After that will be one of the tougher matchups they could get as either Landry Walker of Louisiana or Long Beach Poly of California will be awaiting them before a sure fire very tough game on the 29th ends their run down at the King Cotton Classic.

It's becoming something of a yearly tradition for Canisius out of Buffalo to head down to Atlanta over Christmas as for the second straight year they will be participating in the St. Plus X Christmas Classic. It's a very strong field this year with teams coming in from not just Georgia, but Florida, Maryland, North Carolina, and Ohio in their eight-team bracket that the Crusaders will be participating in. Canisius will get their tournament started on the 27th when they will take on St. Xavier out of Ohio, a strong and tough opening round foe, before they will get either Loyola Blakefield of Maryland or Bishop Kenny of Florida in the next round on December 28th, before a game on the 29th finishes Canisius' tournament run in Georgia.