So this is where it ends, in a high school gymnasium with orange plastic seats. You've spent a good part of your life practicing and playing in gyms just like this one, jacking up hundreds of thousands of shots along the way. And after four years of college ball, this is where it ends -- in the Churchland High School gym in Portsmouth, Va.

The Portsmouth Invitational Tournament is where the NBA dream ends for most of the 64 invited college seniors. Of the three pre-draft camps, PIT is the only one not sanctioned by the NBA. It's a locally run tourney; teams are headed by area coaches and sponsored by everything from Freedom Chevrolet to the Norfolk Naval Yard. You want perspective? Last week, Maryland's Mike Mardesich and Duke's Nate James were playing each other in the Final Four. Less than a week later, they're teammates as well as competitors for one of 15 to17 spots in the NBA's Phoenix Classic camp in early May.

Or how's this for a reality check? George Mason forward and Portsmouth native George Evans last played a game in his hometown 12 years ago. At the time, he stood 6'2". Today, the 30-year-old Gulf War veteran is 6'7", 225. For Evans, it's just another chapter of a story he hopes to continue in the League. "I'm going to write a book when it's all over," he says.

For others, the idea of going back to a high school gym in order to impress scouts from every NBA team is a little strange. "It's weird," says Stanford's Michael McDonald. "But then this is where it all started."

The odds of making it are, of course, extremely long. In the past, players like John Stockton and Scottie Pippen have come out of here. Last year the NBA drafted five players (all second round) from the Virginia camp, including St. John's Lavor Postell (New York Knicks) and Louisiana-Monroe's Mike Smith (Washington Wizards). Two years ago, Division III baller and current Laker Devean George made it all the way into the first round.

In most years, the Phoenix camp takes only a handful of players out of Portsmouth. This year's dearth of talented seniors has pushed that number much higher. Two players undoubtedly on their way are the University of Detroit's Rashad Phillips and another D-III product, 26-year-old Horace Jenkins of William Paterson in New Jersey.

On Saturday, the two faced off in the PIT championship game. And although Jenkins did not start, their head-to-head battle lived up to the hype. A former garbageman with two kids, Jenkins' story is Steve Francis meets Allen Iverson.

Like Francis, he has taken a most unorthodox route to prominence since being declared academically eligible at New Jersey's Elizabeth High School. He played a year at a junior college then dropped out after his son Hakeem was born. In between JC and his stint in D-III he worked for the post office and as an electrician and garbageman while keeping active on the Jersey playgrounds.

The Iverson comparison comes from Jenkins' explosive quickness and slight frame (he's 6'2" and a rail-thin 180 pounds), plus 40-inch vert and AI-like crossover. And it's all that, plus supreme. "That first step is ridiculous," said Eastern Illinois' Kyle Hill, another possible NBA pick. "And if you lay off him, he hits the three."

While Jenkins has the AI crossover, Phillips sports the tightest braids this side of the Answer. Just 5'10", 'Shad missed his first year at Detroit because of academics but received a fifth year of eligibility after graduating in his first four. Phillips is a scoring point with an incredible feel for the game, and in the final he was the only man quick enough to stop Jenkins.

Once they matched up, RP went straight at Jenkins, crossing him over but missing a jumper. On the other end, Jenkins did the same but failed to convert a layup. And on and on it went. "They should have kicked the other eight guys off and just let the two of them go at it," said one NBA scout. At half, Jenkins' K-Plus Services team led by 14, even though Horace had just two points. Phillips led his Beach Barton Ford team back for the W in the second half, hitting three big treys and finishing with 23 points and seven assists. He was named MVP. Afterward, Phillips signed autographs for kids, some nearly his size. On the other side, Jenkins did the same. "I think people got want they wanted," he said of the matchup with RP. "I feel great. I could play another three games."

In three weeks, both Jenkins and Phillips will get to play some more in front of NBA personnel. And there's a good chance both will sneak into the second round come June. PIT may be the end of the NBA dream for most of these 64 seniors, but for Jenkins and Phillips it's only the start.

John Gustafson writes college hoops for ESPN The Magazine. E-mail him at john.gustafson@espnmag.com.