12th Region Notebook

 

 

 

East Jessamine has a 5-3 record and has quality wins over Lincoln County and Garrard County. They are being led in scoring by Ronnie Carson and Timmy Bradshaw which is exactly what was expected from East. They have losses to Boyle County and Mercer County and are currently on the outside looking in to get the much needed 1 seed in their district. Too early to panic but not too early to be concerned.

 

West Jessamine was off to a great start and still is despite a 94-51 pasting from the hands of Henry Clay. That game was a great opportunity for West Jessamine to show what they and the 12th Region are made of and hopefully they learned from it. A season opening loss to Fleming County is nothing to be ashamed of as Fleming County is one of the better teams in their region. Despite the losses West has enjoyed wins over Danville, Central Hardin, Franklin County and McCreary Central. None of those scream quality win other than the Danville game but learning how to win is never a bad thing. Chase Fain and Daulton Peters are tied for the team lead in scoring at 15.7 points a game a piece. Will Henderson is averaging 12 points per game and Robbie Irgang's 9.8 points per game average may as well berounded up to give West4 players averaging double digits points per game. Despite their failure to give Henry Clay a game West Jessamine is still not a team to take lightly and still one of the top teams in the 12th Region.

 

Casey County is sitting at 4-3 and is off to a good start. They don't have what I would call a 'quality win' but like I said earlier, there is nothing wrong with learning how to win. You can't help but see Casey County's record and hope for continued success and hopefully some quality wins from them on down the road.

 

Boyle County has been a very pleasant surprise. Anyone who says they saw Boyle County starting the season 3-0 is either lying or living life with some bigger Black and Gold glasses than the ones I wear. Boyle County has quality wins over Woodford County(4-1), East Jessamine(5-2) and Knox Central(3-1). With strong defense and balanced scoring Boyle County is showing the ability to score from anywhere on the court and the ability to stop you from scoring when needed. Boyle has used this quick start to catapult themselves to the 12th Region Top 5 and with a good showing this week against Clay County and Pulaski County the opportunity to move up in the rankings as well as gain and sustain some much needed early season confidence could work wonders for this brand new looking Rebel team. Is the Steve Adams' best Boyle County team yet? Stay tuned......it could be.....

 

Mercer County is another team trying to gain some early season confidence. Led by junior guard Russell Sims, Mercer County has opened the season 4-1. With games looming against East and West Jessamine we will find out very soon just how good Mercer County is. Sims(20.5 points per game) is currently nursing a broken nose and in his absence senior John Ingraham(15.7 points per game) and freshman Will Hager(14.0 points per game) have filled in nicely.

 

Pulaski County is currently sitting at 2-2 and their two losses came at the hands of Bryan Station and Scott County. While losing to Scott County is to be expected from most teams I would not be honest if I didn't say that loss was still disappointing. The Bryan Station loss was definitely disappointing as Bryan Station simply outplayed Pulaski County. These losses will likely be learning lessons for Pulaski County and their schedule will remain challenging all season long. It will be interesting to see how Pulaksi looks after the holiday tournaments are completeted. Their game against Boyle County looks like it will be streamed live on Friday night at 7:30 on ihigh.

 

Southwestern took two to the chin last week as they dropped a stunner to Wayne County and then a close on to Perry County Central. Obviously both are good teams but I'm thinking Southwestern was the favorite in both games as they are the only team that is ranked in the BGP Top 20 poll. That ranking may be in jeopardy(and rightfully so) but the Warriors still have plenty of time to validate that ranking. I don't expect many more losses from Southwestern but then again I didn't expect them to lose by double digits to Wayne County at home either.

 

Wayne County is currently laying claim to the title of the best team in the 12th Region............this week. After a 79-68 victory AT Southwestern they have earned that temporary distinction as #1 in the 12th Region. With only 2 seniors on their roster Wayne County is sendinga message to the 12th Region not only about this year but next year as well. What was once thought to be a three horse race to region has definitely been proven wrong by the Cardinals. A favorable schedule should produce a lot of experience gaining victories for the Cardinals. Keep an eye on these boys. They are no longer under the radar.

 

Lincoln County is easily the best 1-5 team in the region and quite possibly the state. Lincoln has lost to Holmes(top 5 team in the 9th Region), Russell County(top 3 team in the 4th Region), Wayne County(current #1 in the 12th Region), East Jessamine(top 10 team in the 12th Region) and West Jessamine(top 10 team in the 12th Region). As you can see these are all losses that many teams will take this season at the hands of these teams listed. I'm quite certain that is no excuse in Lincoln County but when judging this record one should look at why hteir record is what it is. Do not be fooled by their winning percentage as Lincoln County is still one of the top 10 teams in the region.

 

Garrard County is obviously adjusting to their new coach. More was expected from them and it will be interesting to see how they respond when district play starts. Right now they just don't seem to be clicking yet.

 

Somerset is sitting at 3-1 and their lone loss is a 6 point loss to Russell County. Ryan Weddle and Ryan Dishman are tied for the team lead in scoring at 14 points a game followed by Tyson WIlliams at 13.5 points a game and then Cam Cheuvront at 11.7 points per game. This balanced scoring attack looks to cause trouble in the 12th Region. Do not sleep on the Briar Jumpers.

 

Danville like Somerset started the season late and only has 4 games in as well. They were manhandled by Southwestern last night and that score is a testament to Danville still needing to get their basketball legs in gear. With an upcoming game against Fleming County it is easy to say that Danville has won the one game they were expected to win. An 8 point loss to West Jessamine shpws that Danville will be competitive going forward.

 

Rockcastle County is at 1-5 and is led by Josh Mason(12 points/game), Sam Pensol(10.3 pts/game) and COrey McPhetridge(10.0) pts/game). While this is not the start Rockcastle envisioned knowing that their three leading scorers will all return next season means they are gaining some valuable varsity experience.

 

McCreary Central, Burgin and Monticello are all taking some lumps early this season. Hopefully they will find some ways to gain some confidence and pick up some wins as the season ages.

 

Kentucky School for the Deaf has a 3-9 record and enjoys wins over Ohio School for the Deaf, Georgia School for the Deaf and Western Pennsylvania School for the Deaf. Corey Lewis has played in 1 game for KSD and had 14 points in that game. Dillon Maynard has played in 5 games for KSD and is averaging 10.2 points a game for KSD.

Upcoming games of interest......

 

 

Pulaski County at Boyle County(12/14)

 

Mercer County at West Jessamine(12/14)

 

Danville at Fleming County(12/14)

 

Lincoln County vs Henderson County(12/15) at McDonald's Hoopin it Up Classic at Adair County

From an outsider's view the 12th seems wide open.

 

Is Boyle surpassing expectations more than anyone else in the region?

Nice 12th region write up PP.

From an outsider's view the 12th seems wide open.

 

Is Boyle surpassing expectations more than anyone else in the region?

I think Wayne surprised most with the double digit win over SW at the wigwam. But, Boyle is right there with them in exceeding expectations to this point.

Good job on the update, Mr. Dookie.

Nice 12th region write up PP.

 

Thank you. Much appreciated.

Good job on the update, Mr. Dookie.

 

Thank you. Much appreciated.

 

 

I love being called Mr. Dookie. :lol:

I think Wayne surprised most with the double digit win over SW at the wigwam. But, Boyle is right there with them in exceeding expectations to this point.

 

Totally agree. I am eagerly anticipating Friday night's Boyle/Pulaski game.