As the Open Division in girls basketball begins its fourth year, there has yet to be a program that has won it more than once.

First came Desert Vista in 2023, followed by Xavier and then Millennium last season.

All three programs are on the same side of the 32-team bracket this year with Millennium as the No. 2 seed, Xavier at No. 22 and Desert Vista at No. 27.

The Tigers have proven to be one of the state’s top programs despite having three different coaches since the 2014-15 season and it remains the case this year under Danny Soliman as they look to defend their title.

“There’s never been a dip, not matter who is coaching the program,” Soliman said. “There is a rich culture and history with this program.”

Millennium has finished runner-up twice in 5A, once in the Open and have won four 5A state titles and one Open championship over the last 11 seasons.

“There is pressure, and we want it,” Soliman said. “Pressure is privilege. We know we are going to get everyone’s best punch. There’s a sense of urgency from our opponents and we have to be ready for it every time we step on the court.”

The Tigers (20-4) are one of the favorites for the next few years considering there is only one senior on the roster in T’maea Eteuati, who shares the top scoring average on the team with junior Dashia Richardson.

Millennium will have plenty of challengers this year as the field is deep and it might just be a matter of which team can go on a five-game win streak to win it all, when the championship is played on March 7 at Veteran’s Memorial Coliseum.

Perry (22-2 overall) is the No. 1 seed and finished the regular season undefeated at 18-0 with two wins over No. 10  Basha, No. 22 Xavier and No. 6 Hamilton.

First-year Perry coach Darren Fenn has forged an approach that can withstand the struggles and stay grounded in the positive surges.

“We’ve been talking about being strong mentally when it isn’t going well,” Fenn said after beating Hamilton. “There’s no quit in us. It’s always the next play mentality. The next 10 seconds are right there in front of you. It’s not the 10 seconds that just happened or the last 3 minutes that just happened. It’s what we’ve been focused on and it’s been good for us.”

Rounding out the top seeds are No. 3 Salpointe (25-3), No. 4 Sandra Day O’Connor (20-2), No. 5 Campo Verde (21-4), the Huskies (18-8) at No. 6, No. 7 Gilbert (17-9), and No. 8 Pueblo (23-4).

The Millennium program has made a championship game eight times in the last 11 season. (MaxPreps)

In a season where there have been seemingly several teams capable of winning it all, don’t be surprised if the eventual champion comes from a seed outside the top four.

“As a 6A program the goal is to win the Open,” Gilbert coach Savannah Bix said. “That’s our goal. That’s what we talk about. It’s anybody’s championship. When you look at the scores during the season, you wonder if it is correct because anyone can beat anyone.

“We’ve mapped out a plan for success and that’s what we are focused on.”

There are definitely some interesting first-round matchups in the Open.

Notre Dame, the No. 25 seed, travels to Pueblo behind the play of Creighton commit Lily McCracken, a pure shooter, who already has 1,000 career points as a junior, while Pueblo features America Cazares, who is 49 points away from becoming the state’s all-time leading scorer and is average 33.6 points per game this season.

Another one features No. 21 Valley Vista at No. 12 Prescott. Valley Vista has been one of the state’s better programs, including a runner-up finish last year in the Open, while Prescott showed its worth when the Badgers ended Flagstaff’s reign of 103-straight wins in region play.

All of it adds up to a five-game gauntlet for one team being able to raise the trophy at the end of the tournament as the Open champion.

“The Open is a great event,” Soliman said. “It takes getting hot at the right time, playing good defense and there’s always some luck involved. If you can put it all together at the right time, then you give yourself a chance to win it all.

“This is what the focus has been on and now it is here. It’s time to go out and play all out. A lot of our players sacrifice scoring more points at another program so they can be part of something special here. It’s what it takes - sacrifice for the betterment of the team.”