I thought Blevins was great for Wayne, and Perkins is the type of kid that every team loves to have. Good enough to score double figures, but doesn't need to score to contribute. Played extremely hard.

Stearns also played well for the Cardinals. Woods did not get going offensively, but he was money at the line.

Wayne is a fun team to watch as they play hard and fast and shoot a ton of threes.

 

For Knott Central, I thought Hall was fantastic. He had a viscous dunk (I thought he probably got fouled on it), but was called for a T for hanging on the rim. I wasn't shocked by the T, but thought it was a poor decision, because at the speed he was going, and with a defender right on him, it would have been dangerous to come down quickly. He did pull himself up a little, but I thought it was more out of necessity than not. If the call was the correct one, the rule needs to be changed!

Knott was called for a ton of charges, and I thought they were almost always good calls. They seem to just go to the rim regardless of if a defender is in front of them. They could have been called for a few more offensive fouls if the refs would have been interested in calling the push off.

Justice scored a bunch, but it wasn't ever easy for him.

 

The crowd was great. Wayne and Knott both had bigger crowds than either Lexington Catholic or Lafyette in the nightcap.

This was an extremely fun game to watch from a neutral perspective!

 

Excellent observations by Rez.

 

Wayne has three offensive weapons in Woods, Blevins & Stearns (25-18-18 ppg) not counting Perkins who could score more but seems content to contribute in every other way.

 

T's for hanging on the rim in high school seem kind of archaic to me. Rarely have I seem instances where they need to be called. I think officials sometimes just get caught up in the game and blow their whistles too quickly and likely regret it later.

 

Knott also has their share of outstanding players, most notably in Justice & Hall. Justice has proven his skills and Hall is a monster around the basket. KCC's players would average more ppg but they prefer playing a more disciplined game usually holding their opponents to less than 48 ppg.

 

In the first half Knott possibly got away with driving to the basket leading with their arms & elbows out, but the officials started calling it later and KCC didn't adapt to the inconsistent officiating. Yes, that's kind of a backdoor slam at the officiating since most all coaches will tell you the single biggest thing they look for from officials is consistency. Had the officials called them for charging more early then they might have avoided fouling out later.

 

Wayne deserves credit for never quitting despite being down by 16 with less than 4 minutes to go. They were forced to go to their all-court press despite the foul trouble that had kept them from doing so earlier - and it obviously paid off speeding up the tempo and allowing them to score a LOT of points in a very short span of time.

 

Very good chance these two will see each other again at Rupp. I hope so as it would be another war that they fans would love.

 

Now on to Montgomery County this afternoon for both Wayne & KCC. Wayne will see if they can continue their undefeated streak against Montgomery and KCC will attempt to rebound against Fleming, possibly the best team out of the 16th Region.

Knott Central mist have played fantastic if they had a 16 points lead, but they have to be able to finish. They let this one slip away in the final minutes.

 

They played the final 2:00 without Hall, Justice, and Christon who all fouled out.

They played the final 2:00 without Hall, Justice, and Christon who all fouled out.

 

That is the ball game right there.

They played the final 2:00 without Hall, Justice, and Christon who all fouled out.

 

Well, now I see how Wayne made such a comeback behind their press effort. They were playing Knott's subs. I think if these two teams met again it would be a different story, but B.B would have to make better adjustments to how the officiating are calling the game. I just don't see how that many charges could be called in a game, but evidently KCC must have been trying to bull their way to the basket. Did Wayne get called for any blocking fouls??

I didn't see it mentioned any where but Camron Justice fouled out. I'm pretty sure Evan Hall and Simon Christon also fouled out.

 

Wayne County is good, really good.

 

This is a series I'd like to see get started, it's a long haul (2 & half hours)...Knott plays Mercer County which is close to 3 hours.

I didn't see it mentioned any where but Camron Justice fouled out. I'm pretty sure Evan Hall and Simon Christon also fouled out.

 

Wayne County is good, really good.

 

This is a series I'd like to see get started, it's a long haul (2 & half hours)...Knott plays Mercer County which is close to 3 hours.

 

Justice fouled out on a charge call if I am not mistaken. He fouled out before Hall.

Justice fouled out on a charge call if I am not mistaken. He fouled out before Hall.

 

I knew he had fouled out on the charge call but wasn't sure who fouled out first.

There's no doubt that Wayne is very good. Heck, they're undefeated this late in the season! But I think if they make it to the Sweet 16 that their lack of size and reliance on mostly a guard oriented attack will work against them if they are fortunate enough to make it past the first round. I've been going to the state tournament for a long time and I've seen these quick, good shooting guard-led teams that have energy and spunk at the beginning of the tournament, but as they advance they run into the bigger teams that also have quick guards, etc, and that's when they falter. Smaller teams that have kids that can 'jump out of the gym' wear down, especially if they have to play the first round on Thursday. The Wednesday teams get a one day break.

There's no doubt that Wayne is very good. Heck, they're undefeated this late in the season! But I think if they make it to the Sweet 16 that their lack of size and reliance on mostly a guard oriented attack will work against them if they are fortunate enough to make it past the first round. I've been going to the state tournament for a long time and I've seen these quick, good shooting guard-led teams that have energy and spunk at the beginning of the tournament, but as they advance they run into the bigger teams that also have quick guards, etc, and that's when they falter. Smaller teams that have kids that can 'jump out of the gym' wear down, especially if they have to play the first round on Thursday. The Wednesday teams get a one day break.

 

 

That will definitely be a concern for Wayne.

It was a super game to watch from a fan perspective and so many things to speak to. The officiating was inconsistent. What they didnt call in the first half they started calling in the second half and late in the game. I think it did frustrate both sides. The order of fouling out for KCC was Christon then Justice then Hall. In the officials defense there were so many tough calls to make. In all honesty, Wayne County flops alot and KCC chicken wings it alot so all those block/charge calls make it so hard. KCC (only the second time I have seen them this year) does seem to drive to the basket with reckless abandon. Justice and Hall are a fine duo. Wayne is a nice team. Like I said it was a fun game to watch and mentioned earlier both those fan bases had the most people there (including Lafayette and Catholic)

Well, now I see how Wayne made such a comeback behind their press effort. They were playing Knott's subs. I think if these two teams met again it would be a different story, but B.B would have to make better adjustments to how the officiating are calling the game. I just don't see how that many charges could be called in a game, but evidently KCC must have been trying to bull their way to the basket. Did Wayne get called for any blocking fouls??

 

Where was Hall, Justice, and Christon when Wayne was down 66-50? I think Wayne went on a 21-5 run in the next three minutes with those guys in the game. If Knotts coach cant make adjustments in big games thats not Waynes fault. You cant just run players over, no matter if you are Knott, Wayne, Ballard, etc. Its been mentioned here before, Wayne starts teaching( and this is stressed) at a early age in their program not to foul. Tell me one other program in the state that does this?

 

I am not taking anything from Knott. They are a very good team and this game could have went either way and thats the way I see it if they play again( which is not a given for either). Today though, Knott was out played and out coached.

KCC lost because they could not break WC's press, end of story. They rushed passes and made stupid decisions. ANd I for 1 didn't think Wayne's press was all that intimidating.

 

It KCC plays a team that presses all the time and well (Ballard) they'll lose by 30.

Congrats to Wayne County. Says a lot about their team.

Where was Hall, Justice, and Christon when Wayne was down 66-50? I think Wayne went on a 21-5 run in the next three minutes with those guys in the game. If Knotts coach cant make adjustments in big games thats not Waynes fault. You cant just run players over, no matter if you are Knott, Wayne, Ballard, etc. Its been mentioned here before, Wayne starts teaching( and this is stressed) at a early age in their program not to foul. Tell me one other program in the state that does this?

 

I am not taking anything from Knott. They are a very good team and this game could have went either way and thats the way I see it if they play again( which is not a given for either). Today though, Knott was out played and out coached.

 

Oh, don't misunderstand me. Wayne did what it took to win the game. I saw them play in the state tournament last year and was impressed. Woods is one of the best coaches in the state.

But I would think if Knott didn't have their 3 best players in the game during the final minutes it would definitely have to had an impact on enabling Wayne to win this game. And as was mentioned by another poster who was at the game, Knott chicken-wings and charges often and Wayne is good at flopping. I wasn't at the game so I don't know. It's a difficult call for an official to make.

I have seen Knott play a few times this year and I agree that they are very aggressive at taking the ball to the basket. A team that works hard on defense and is knowledgable about how to take a charge would give them problems, as obviously Wayne did.

There's no doubt that Wayne is very good. Heck, they're undefeated this late in the season! But I think if they make it to the Sweet 16 that their lack of size and reliance on mostly a guard oriented attack will work against them if they are fortunate enough to make it past the first round. I've been going to the state tournament for a long time and I've seen these quick, good shooting guard-led teams that have energy and spunk at the beginning of the tournament, but as they advance they run into the bigger teams that also have quick guards, etc, and that's when they falter. Smaller teams that have kids that can 'jump out of the gym' wear down, especially if they have to play the first round on Thursday. The Wednesday teams get a one day break.

 

Guard oriented or not, Wayne continues to roll. This win showed that they can compete with, and beat, the best team in the mountains. In the process, they showed that they can beat a good team that has a good big - something for which Wayne shouldn't have an answer. AND a team said to have 2 future D1 players.

 

Today, they take on Montgomery, a team with a completely different look. Much quicker and more athletic. A team with a very good PG, which Knott is lacking (Justice is a great player, but PG is not his true position). A team that, like Wayne, is more balanced. If they can win at Montgomery, or play them down to the wire, then they've proven a lot this weekend.

 

Most people don't realize how much lift they get from their chemistry and basketball IQ, not to mention spectacular coaching. I swear that makes them 15 points better!

 

Regarding the state tournament, outside of a Ballard, PRP, or NCC (maybe Holmes), I think they will fare just fine - assuming they do well against Montgomery today - which I now expect. They do rely on outside shooting but they have several players that can shoot it which makes them less susceptible to a bad shooting night.

 

Lastly, the reference to them being a team that can jump out of the gym...interesting. Not the first thing that comes to mind when I think of them. They do have one kid in Stearns that fits the bill. He is undersized for his position (SG/PF), but he is very strong and a good leaper, which are huge mitigants for him at this level.