Inside the 13th Region 2/2/15

It’s been another interesting week of high school basketball in the 13th Region. The more thing change, the more things stay the same as Clay County remains unbeaten against 13th Region competition. Williamsburg suffered its first loss of the season this past week while North Laurel’s new addition, Isaiah Collier, has helped guide the Jaguars to two consecutive wins.

1. Clay County (19-4 overall, 13-0 vs. 13th Region opponents)

The Tigers keep rolling against 13th Region foes, and is now a perfect 13-0 against their regional counterparts, but with that said, seven of those wins have been at least 10 points or less, which means Clay County is beatable, but until a region team beats the Tigers, they remain the team to beat.

2. Williamsburg (17-1, 13-0)

The Yellow Jackets are no longer the lone unbeaten team in the state after falling to Danville in first round action of the All “A” Classic State Tournament. The Yellow Jackets were just as good as the Admirals, but Danville’s speed and athleticism proved to be too much for Patrick Robinson’s squad. Plus, Andrew Griffith needs more touches. When he has the basketball, he is hard to stop.

3. South Laurel (11-9, 4-6)

The Cardinals have been on a roll during the past week. South Laurel had 623 students participate in its student-section against Corbin, and their presence was felt, as Jeff Davis’ squad rallied from a 16-9 deficit to lead by as many as 27 points against the Redhounds before winning, 70-54. The Cardinals also recorded an impressive 62-49 road win against Harlan County.

4. Knox Central (12-11, 7-2)

The Panthers are a hard team to gauge really because of all of the injuries they have compiled this season. First off they had an injury to Jeffrey Adams, then Chad Marsee and now Dustin Hensley. If Knox Central can get all three back, don’t be surprised to see them make a run at the 13th Region crown.

5. North Laurel (8-13, 3-5)

The Jaguars snapped a five-game losing skid by knocking off Whitley County, who was without leading scorer James Sasko, and Oneida Baptist. North Laurel also welcomed transfer Isaiah Collier to the team and he has scored in double figures in the two games he has played in. Collier’s addition, along with players such as Bailey Rice and Kyle Jeffers improving, has made North Laurel a dark horse to win the region.

6. Corbin (13-7, 7-6)

The Redhounds have been a hard team to figure out. After starting the season with a 6-1 mark, Tony Pietrowski’s squad has been 7-6 since. The Redhounds picked up a big road win over Knox Central before getting beat by 16 points by South Laurel, but then responded with a 64-45 road win over Bell County.

7. Whitley County (15-6, 8-3)

The Colonels are riding a two-game losing skid after falling to Williamsburg by 21 points and then dropping a two-point decision to North Laurel. They were without the services of leading scorer and rebounder James Sasko against the Jaguars.

8. Harlan County (11-10, 4-5)

The Black Bears are really struggling right now. They are 3-6 during their last nine games.

9. Jackson County (12-11, 4-6)

The Generals have been a hard team to figure out the entire season. They almost knocked off Clay County this past week before losing by six points and then followed with a 14-point loss to a Jackson City team that is 11-13. Jackson County did pick up an impressive win over Barbourville Monday.

10. Barbourville (15-7, 9-5)

I was surprised to see the Tigers fall to Jackson County on Monday, and they have a tough stretch of games coming up.

Player of the Week

Peyton Broughton, North Laurel

Broughton scored 23 points against Whitley County and added a 25-point point effort against Oneida Baptist, as the Jaguars picked up two big wins this past week.