Neal Verge has volunteered for nearly three decades at the Rotary International/YMCA basketball Classic in Boothbay Harbor. During those years, Verge has seen his share of great seventh and eighth grade teams. He saw Riverton, of Portland, win the boys’ division five straight years from 1980-84.

He has also seen his share of great players like Nik Caner-Medley, of Portland, who played for the University of Maryland and professionally in Russia. Verge also saw former University of Maine women’s basketball coach Joanne Palombo-McCallie play for Brunswick in the Classic. Palombo-McCallie now coaches the Duke University women’s basketball team.

A new group of stars and teams will compete in the Rotary International/YMCA Basketball Classic on March 6, 7 and 8. The boys’ tournament is being held at the Boothbay Harbor YMCA. The girls’ tournament is at the Boothbay Regional Elementary School.

For Verge — who started as a volunteer and now oversees the tournament — the Classic is an opportunity to watch basketball players in the Boothbay region and others from around the state grow as basketball players.

“It’s fun to watch these kids play now, and then see them play in high school,” Verge said. “We’ve seen some incredibly talented players and teams over the years. The tournament usually has a very strong field. It’s developed a bit of a reputation, too. The teams that come, think they’re pretty good and believe they are going to win the tournament.”

This year’s field has drawn 10 boys’ teams: Boothbay Region YMCA, Central Lincoln County YMCA, China, Gray-New Gloucester, Richmond, Skowhegan, Hall-Dale, Medomak 7, Medomak 8  and Oceanside.

The girls’ field has six teams: Boothbay Region YMCA, Central Lincoln County YMCA, Medomak, Oceanside, Wiscasset and Winterport. Last year, Boothbay entered two girls teams. One finished second and the other third.

Verge credits the tournament’s success to a hardworking group of volunteers. During the weekend, Verge said his main duty is running the clock and keeping score during games.

But volunteer Tim Rice disagrees. He said Verge has been the driving force behind the tournament for the past 25 years.

“He’s the brains of the tournament and makes everything go,” Rice said. “He’s the biggest advocate of the tournament, and all the volunteers know to follow his lead.”

In recent years, Verge said Eddie Crocker has taken a great role in organizing the tournament.

“Eddie used to work for the Y and he does a lot of the organizing,” Verge said. “He’s responsible for contacting the teams and getting the board officials.”

This year’s tournament follows the same format as past years. It’s double elimination. Individual trophies are given to players on teams who place first, second and third. The Classic also features two shooting competitions: NBA 2ball and Hot Shots. Each competition features two players. The team with the highest combined score is the winner. Each team’s shooters will compete prior to their first game.

The Boothbay Region boys’ first game is Friday, at 8:30 p.m. against Medomak 7. The girls play Friday versus Medomak at 6:15 p.m.

The boys tournament begins at 4 p.m. on Friday in the Boothbay Region YMCA gymnasium. The first boys’ contest pits Central Lincoln County YMCA versus China. The girls tournament begins at 5:30 p.m. with Central Lincoln YMCA  versus Oceanside at the Boothbay Region Elementary School gymnasium

The tournament resumes at both locations on Saturday. The boys games start at 8 a.m. and girls at 9:30 a.m. The girls’ championship game is at 4 p.m. on March 7.

The boys’ tournament continues on March 8 at 9 a.m. The boys championship game is scheduled for 2 p.m.