article Bluegrasspreps.com 3rd Region Final Rankings & District Previews

FINAL REGULAR SEASON RANKINGS

1.Owensboro Red Devils (19-7) – SAME – The Devils finished the week splitting a pair of road games. On Tuesday, they gave one away in Hopkinsville. The Devils led by 3 and had the ball late in the game, but were unable to hold off the Tigers. Hoptown hit a 3 to take the game into overtime and led though out the extra period. On Thursday, they bounced back strong to win at Henderson 72-66. Cory Gardner led the Devils with 21. Gardner was named the 3rd Region's Mr Basketball candidate on Friday.

2.Daviess County Panthers (19-10) – SAME – DC opened the week with a 58-39 road win in Grayson County. Jay Owen had 20 and Blake Boswell added 19. Thursday, DC gave a great effort against John Hardin, before falling short in overtime. Mr Basketball candidate Mickey Pearson hit a hail-mary type of buzzer beater to force the extra frame. The Panthers, missing 2 starters with the flu, still performed very well.

3.Owensboro Catholic Aces (19-9) - SAME – The Aces got a pair of 10th district wins to close out the season. Tuesday they knocked off Ohio County, 65-52. JD Marshall led all scorers with 17. On Thursday, they shocked Muhlenberg County with a 30-6 run to erase an 18 point 4th quarter deficit. Luke Hayden had 24 and Gabe McFarland added 20 with some big time steals in the run.

4.Meade County Greenwave (14-9) – UP 1– Meade split a pair of games to end the season. Tuesday they lost to a good E-Town team, 69-52. The Waves bounced back with a really nice home win over Central Hardin 58-41. Meade has been in the regional championship game each of the last 3 years and have the talent to make another run this year.

5.Apollo Eagles (12-14) – UP 1 – Apollo closed out the season strong, with 2 wins this past week. On Tuesday, they were impressive in a 60-56 road win in Madisonville. The Eagles put 4 players in double figures, led by Angel Saldana's 15. Friday, they blew out Mclean County on senior night. Big man James Graham was a block away from a triple double with 16 points, 11 boards and 9 blocks.

6.Muhlenberg County Mustangs (11-14) – UP 1 – Even with dropping their final 2 games of the season, it feels like the Mustangs can be dangerous. They held a 4th quarter lead over one of the best teams in West KY, Christian County, before coming up short in the end. Will Nofsinger hit 7 3's, and finished with 34 points. On Thursday, the Stangs held an 18 point lead against Owensboro Catholic before collapsing in the 4th quarter to lose the game. If im taking one team outside the city with the best chance to make a run, its a close race between Muhlenberg and Meade.

7.Ohio County Eagles (13-13) – DOWN 3 - The Eagles finished the regular season on a bit of a down note, losing big to Owensboro Catholic on Tuesday and then dropping a tough road game in Madisonville on Thursday.

8.Breckenridge County Tigers (14-11) – SAME – Breck split a pair of games to close the season. On Tuesday, they dropped a road game at Central Hardin 71-62. Thursday, they knocked off Trinity 57-45. Kobe Poole closed the season with a 23.8 ppg average that ranks him in the top 10 in the state in scoring.

9.Whitesville Trinity Raiders (16-14) - SAME - On Tuesday, the Raiders clinched their first winning season since 2004 with a win over Dawson Springs. They closed the season with a tough road loss to Breck County 57-45. The Raiders will now host the 12th district tournament as the #1 seed.

10.Butler County Bears (11-13) - UP 2 - The Bears closed out the season on a good note, getting solid wins over Cloverport and Hancock County. Butler guard Will Moore was one of the best scorers in the region at 21.7ppg.

11.Grayson County Cougars (11-16) – SAME – The Cougars split a pair of games to close the season. On Tuesday, they battled Daviess County but came up short at home. On Friday, Grayson got a big win over Hancock, 44-27.

12.Hancock County Hornets (14-15) – DOWN 2 – Hancock had a busy week to close the season. Early in the week they built their winning streak to 3 with wins over Madison Christian and Cannelton. However, their up and down season continued as they lost 2 straight to close the season against Grayson and Butler County.

13.Edmonson County Wildcats (9-20) – SAME– The Cats closed out the season with a win against Mclean on Tuesday, 76-73 and a loss to Greenwood 68-53.

14.Mclean County Cougars (7-20) – SAME – Mclean closed the season on an 8 game losing streak, 3 this week. Edmonson, Webster and Apollo all bested the Cougars this week. Keenan Smith and Logan Patterson ended the year averaging 17ppg, making Mclean a dangerous team in the 1st round of district.

15.Cloverport Aces (2-24) – SAME – Cloverport ended their season with losses to Ft Knox, Butler County and Dawson Springs.

DISTRICT PAIRINGS

12th - at Trinity - Tuesday at 6pm 1.Trinity(16-14) v Edmonson(9-20) - Edmonson won both meetings by 9 & 8. 2.Grayson(11-16) v Butler(11-13) - Grayson won both back to back by 3 & 15. Boys championship at 7pm on Friday.

PREDICTION - The 12th may be the most wide open district tournament in the region. I give Trinity the slight edge since they host the tournament, although Edmonson beat them twice in the regular season. Butler County has the best scorers in the district with Grubb & Moore.

Trinity & Butler with Trinity winning the championship

11th - at Breck - Tuesday at 5:30 1.Meade(14-9) v Cloverport(2-24) - Meade won both by a lot. 2.Breck(14-11) v Hancock(14-15) - split regular season. Breck won by 8 in the first meeting. Hancock won the 2nd by 4. Boys championship at 7pm Friday.

PREDICTION - Meade should win in a landslide, and keep its players fresh for the title game. Breck and Hancock are pretty close in talent, but Breck will be hard to beat at home.

Meade & Breck with Meade winning the championship

10th - at Ohio Monday at 7:45 - 2.Ohio(13-13) v McLean(7-20) - Ohio won both - by 2 in OT & by 25. Winner gets Muhlenberg Thursday at 7pm

PREDICTION - Mclean is the heavy underdog but it would not be a shocker if they pulled the upset. They have 2 guys who can score with the best of them. I still lean Ohio County since they are hosting. Either team will have their hands full with Muhlenberg, but ill take the Eagles in an upset after losing both regular season games to the Stangs.

Ohio & Muhlenberg - Ohio wins the championship

9th - at OHS - Tuesday at 7pm 1.OHS(19-7) v Apollo(12-14) -split meetings (OHS by 18, Apollo by 4) Wed 7pm - 2.DC(19-10) v Cath(19-9) - split(DC by 10, Catholic by 1). Championship game 7pm Friday

PREDICTION - In the 9th district tournament, all bets are off. The #1 seed has lost 3 of the last 4 years. Both games should be very competitive and both could go either way, but ill pick the teams that have been the most consistent over the entire season.

Owensboro & Daviess County - Owensboro wins the championship

ALL DISTRICT TEAMS (2 players from each school)

9th District - Owensboro - Cory Gardner & Deonte Douglas, Apollo - Alex Gray & Nathan Boyle , Catholic - JD Marshall & Luke Hayden , Daviess Co - Jay Owen & Blake Boswell

10th District - Muhlenberg - Will Nofsinger & Alex VanHook , Ohio - John Parker & Logan Sandefur , Mclean - Keenan Smith & Logan Patterson

11th District - Meade - Aidan Matthews & Chezney Weick , Breck - Kobe Poole & Tanner Whitworth , Hancock - Jaxson Gray & Jacob White , Cloverport - Dylan Simmons & Xander Jennings

12th District - Trinity - Cameron Wright & Dalton Crisp , Grayson - Bailey Logsdon & Caleb Ray , Edmonson - Logan Lindsey & Tucker Cole , Butler - Will Moore & Brennan Grubb

Top 10 Players to Watch in the Post-Season

1.Corey Gardner - Owensboro - The Devils PG is probably going to be the 3rd Region Player of the Year. The Devils come and go as he performs.

2.Will Nofsinger - Muhlenberg County - The leading scorer in the region (24ppg) gives his team a chance every night. The Mustangs have been very close to some big upsets this year and could be a dark horse to pull an upset run because of Will.

3.Kobe Poole - Breck County - Poole is one of the best scorers in the region (23.7 ppg). If he can get some help, he could have a long tourney run.

4.Blake Boswell - Daviess County - Blake not only puts up 17ppg but he facilitated for all of his teammates this year. He is the most unselfish player in the region.

5.Aiden Matthews - Meade County - This guy flys under the radar but has been a double double machine all season. He’s looking to power Meade to their 4th straight 3rd Region title game appearance.

6.Luke Hayden - Owensboro Catholic - Luke has been battling small injuries all season but finally seems healthy. He took over the last couple games of the season and looks ready to lead the Aces into a tough 1st round draw.

7.Nathan Boyle - Apollo - Nathan could be the sleeper of the group. He will need a player of the year type of performance vs Owensboro to make a playoff run. If the Eagles do pull the upset, lookout.

8.Will Moore - Butler County - one of the regions best pure scorers (21.7ppg), Moore could lift Butler to a tournament run. He hit a big shot to upset Hancock County a year ago, so you know he has the ability to be clutch.

9.JD Marshall - Owensboro Catholic - Marshall has the ability to be the best big man in the region but has to show consistency and he needs to want the ball. If he has the right mindset, he can be a force for the Aces.

10.Jay Owen - Daviess County - If Daviess County makes a run to Rupp, it will be because Owen has knocked down big shots. One of the best 3 point shooters in the region, Owen will have some chances to elevate the Panthers.

As always, great break down. I see that you took the easy road, naming two from each team for all district. Cannot complain about that though I do believe Tinsley from OHS could have gotten a nod if you went deeper.

Congratulations to Corey Gardner. He's had a very good year.

I am interested to see if Apollo pulls out the box and 1 again and if they do, the question is will Lewis just stand in the corner for pretty much the entire game? Apollo won by 4 at their place but Tinsley didn't play and Lewis didn't score a point. I don't think either of those things are going to happen Tuesday. Tinsley put in 20 against Hoptown, I guess that means he's back to (if not)full (he's close) strength. If Lewis gets hot against Apollo like he did against Catholic a lot of people may be leaving the gym early. The Devils need to dial up the defense early and take the Eagles out of their game. A good hard fought first half, then Owensboro walks away with the win.

DC played John Hardin very tough, but Malik Wright and Aaron Scott were benched 2 mins into the game and didn't return. Seemed to be for disciplinary reasons.....again DC played very hard and very good, but JH was shorthanded also.

As always, great break down. I see that you took the easy road, naming two from each team for all district. Cannot complain about that though I do believe Tinsley from OHS could have gotten a nod if you went deeper.

 

Congratulations to Corey Gardner. He's had a very good year.

 

I am interested to see if Apollo pulls out the box and 1 again and if they do, the question is will Lewis just stand in the corner for pretty much the entire game? Apollo won by 4 at their place but Tinsley didn't play and Lewis didn't score a point. I don't think either of those things are going to happen Tuesday. Tinsley put in 20 against Hoptown, I guess that means he's back to (if not)full (he's close) strength. If Lewis gets hot against Apollo like he did against Catholic a lot of people may be leaving the gym early. The Devils need to dial up the defense early and take the Eagles out of their game. A good hard fought first half, then Owensboro walks away with the win.

Tinsley is the difference maker for me. Im not sure Apollo has anyone that can guard him. Defense will be a big key to the game. Apollo handed the press very well the last time and kept Owensboro out of transition by hitting shots. That's the key to competing with them. While I do think Apollo could be the toughest matchup for OHS in the first round, an upset will still be a tall task. Should be a fantastic atmosphere.

As for the All-District teams, I had to select some for our Homers Radio district preview shows and ive learned over the years, id better keep it even. Haha. That said, there were a handful of guys that I think could have made it by expanding the rosters.

DC played John Hardin very tough, but Malik Wright and Aaron Scott were benched 2 mins into the game and didn't return. Seemed to be for disciplinary reasons.....again DC played very hard and very good, but JH was shorthanded also.

I got a chance to call that game for the Homers and yes, you are correct. Wright and Scott got into a shouting match with the coach during the first timeout and never returned. I was disappointed because I really wanted to see Wright, but I commend the coaching for instilling some discipline. That being said, I was still super impressed with the toughness of Daviess County without Walden and Owen. They should have won the game in regulation, but Mickey Pearson is a BEAST.

Tinsley is the difference maker for me. Im not sure Apollo has anyone that can guard him. Defense will be a big key to the game. Apollo handed the press very well the last time and kept Owensboro out of transition by hitting shots. That's the key to competing with them. While I do think Apollo could be the toughest matchup for OHS in the first round, an upset will still be a tall task. Should be a fantastic atmosphere.

 

As for the All-District teams, I had to select some for our Homers Radio district preview shows and ive learned over the years, id better keep it even. Haha. That said, there were a handful of guys that I think could have made it by expanding the rosters.

I wholeheartedly agree with your take on Tinsley. He would have made a HUGE difference if he had played in their last meeting. Hogg gave up a couple of rebounds down the stretch that I don't believe Tinsley would have. That could have very easily made a difference in the game.

If Apollo keeps OHS out of its' transition game and limits their defensive pressure, I think they have an extremely good chance of winning. But; if the devils get their press turned up early and get a ton of points off the pressure, it's going to be a very long night for the Eagles. Do you think Apollo will go back to their box and 1 this game?

I think there is a possibility but I look for them to mix it up. I’ll be interested to see how Gardner goes against Saldana this time.

Head to head, player to player, Apollo has more talent. I'm even going with the coaching staff. Barker is a stronger coach making game time decisions. Front court of Angel and Nathan Boyle, plus throw in Shelton, that's a recipe for disaster. Boyle is a stronger more consistent shooter than Lewis, can do more off the dribble. Shelton is every bit the player of Gardner, a better long ball shooter, IMO. If Shelton gets hot, look out. You have a stronger coaching staff in Barker and Bridges over Drake and Embry. More basketball knowledge and in game adjustments, easily. OHS tends to get a little emotional at times on the sidelines leaving the players to make the adjustments themselves. This will be a huge bonus and plus for the Eagles. As I see this, Apollo puts it all together on the Red Devils home floor and leaves with a 6 point victory.

Head to head, player to player, Apollo has more talent. I'm even going with the coaching staff. Barker is a stronger coach making game time decisions. Front court of Angel and Nathan Boyle, plus throw in Shelton, that's a recipe for disaster. Boyle is a stronger more consistent shooter than Lewis, can do more off the dribble. Shelton is every bit the player of Gardner, a better long ball shooter, IMO. If Shelton gets hot, look out. You have a stronger coaching staff in Barker and Bridges over Drake and Embry. More basketball knowledge and in game adjustments, easily. OHS tends to get a little emotional at times on the sidelines leaving the players to make the adjustments themselves. This will be a huge bonus and plus for the Eagles. As I see this, Apollo puts it all together on the Red Devils home floor and leaves with a 6 point victory.

I am just asking. Other than the 2 games they've played head to head, how many ohs games have you seen?

Head to head, player to player, Apollo has more talent. I'm even going with the coaching staff. Barker is a stronger coach making game time decisions. Front court of Angel and Nathan Boyle, plus throw in Shelton, that's a recipe for disaster. Boyle is a stronger more consistent shooter than Lewis, can do more off the dribble. Shelton is every bit the player of Gardner, a better long ball shooter, IMO. If Shelton gets hot, look out. You have a stronger coaching staff in Barker and Bridges over Drake and Embry. More basketball knowledge and in game adjustments, easily. OHS tends to get a little emotional at times on the sidelines leaving the players to make the adjustments themselves. This will be a huge bonus and plus for the Eagles. As I see this, Apollo puts it all together on the Red Devils home floor and leaves with a 6 point victory.

Lewis is a bit slow off the dribble, I will give you that. He has gotten a bit better as of late, but give him an opportunity and he could very easily shoot lights out. From three he can be deadly when he's on. As far as Gardner, he is as quick as anybody in this region bar none. I am sorry but apollo has no answer for his quickness you just have to hope he's not on and is making bad decisions with the ball. You failed to mention Owensboro's X factor, Tinsley. He was not available in the devil's 4 point loss. If the last two games are any indication, he's back and ready to play. I don't believe there's an answer for him on Apollo's bench. If you have one, let me know.

Regarding the coaching staffs, they are both good. I don't know that you can put one ahead of the other but you are entitled to your opinion. I haven't seen the Eagles enough to say what they cannot do, but in the two games I've seen, Gardner is quicker than anyone coach Barker can put on the floor. The one guy I think might have some quickness spent the entire last game standing in front of Lewis in the corner. I watched Gardner shut down your point guard on defense and have seen him blow past your defensive sets. He's done it to most teams. You are entitled to your opinion as you are a fan of the eagles and there's nothing wrong with that, I am just wondering how many times you've seen Owensboro to make the claims that you've made.

Apollo couldn't win by 6 at home, why would you think they'd win by that much at Owensboro? I don't think you'll hold Lewis to one shot this game, do you?:no:

I think ApolloFan98 will agree with me. Look for the upset tonight. Ive seen OHS play on several occasions. Good team. But, they are beatable.

I think ApolloFan98 will agree with me. Look for the upset tonight. Ive seen OHS play on several occasions. Good team. But, they are beatable.

No doubt, they are beatable. But I don't think it's happening tonight. But then again, I didn't believe you'd see apollo and Daviess county beat OHS in football in the same year either. As I said before should be a good game.

Wow!! Great game. My hat is off to coach Barker and the Eagles. I saw a lot of questionable calls on both sides. But it was a very good game. Probably the best one of the tourney. If County beats Catholic that one might be just as big.

I was mistaken. Lance Lewis was held to 1 shot. Didn't think it would happen but, if you had told me that Apollo and Daviess County would beat OHS in football this year, I'd say you were crazy. Never thought they would be able to run that defense again and beat Owensboro. Congrats to Coach Barker again.

Im going to be honest, I did not see this one coming. While I thought Apollo would make Owensboro sweat, I did not think they would get the win on the road. Owensboro seemed to tighten up a couple of times in the game and it cost them. The game wasn't officiated very well for the Devils either, but its hard to make that excuse when you have the chances OHS had in the final 90 seconds. I said before the game, its these types of Apollo teams that usually end up making a run to Rupp. The ones you don't see coming. They've got a long ways to go, but tonight was a big step in that direction.