To area high school basketball fans, the annual Newton County vs. Rockdale County Senior All-Star Basketball games, 3-point shootout and slam dunk contest are great ways to see the top talent they have rooted for over the last four years.

The event, putting players on the same court together from Alcovy, Eastside, Newton, Rockdale, Heritage and Salem high schools, will be at Rockdale High on Thursday.

The communities are encouraged to come out and support their teams. Cost is $5 per person, and doors open at 4:30 p.m.

The competition between rivals begins at 5 p.m., starting with the 3-point competition, going to 5:20 p.m., featuring two girls and two boys from each school. Each contestant will shoot three times from five different spots on the floor.

The top two scorers will move on to the championship round. A tie will be decided by a shoot-off with each contestant shooting once from the five designated spots.

Once a girls and boys champion has been declared, there will be a shoot-off using the same format to determine an overall champion.

The next event will be a dunk contest, going from approximately 5:25 p.m. to 5:45 p.m. There will be two contestants per school, and each contestant will have 30 seconds to complete a dunk in round one. There will be a panel of judges who will determine the top four contestants who then move on to the second round. The same format will be used for round two, with a champion determined by the judges.

The games will begin at 6 p.m., starting with the girls. The boys will follow at 7:30 p.m. with each game having two 18-minute halves.

Rockdale High’s coaches will lead the two Rockdale County squads, while Newton’s Rick Rasmussen and Alcovy’s Kidada Holtzclaw will lead the Newton County boys and girls teams, respectively.