How many times in the past 15 or so years has the 15th drawn the 7th? Seems like quiet a few times.

 

Jeffersontown/Paintsville - 2008 or 2009

Ballard/Shelby Valley - 2003

Ballard/Johnson Central - 2013

 

Any other years I'm missing?

 

2006 - Johnson Central drew J-Town

2006 - Johnson Central drew J-Town

 

See post 13 and 14.

 

15th, give us your thoughts on this game! You have followed the Eagles this year and would have the best input on what their chances are. I know this is a big task but will they beat the Bruins? I think it will be closer than what most are saying. The Eagles have been there 4 straight years, have a lot of talent besides Gullett and to me Ballard looks beatable more so than years past. I think a win is very possible! What do you have?

See post 13 and 14.

 

15th, give us your thoughts on this game! You have followed the Eagles this year and would have the best input on what their chances are. I know this is a big task but will they beat the Bruins? I think it will be closer than what most are saying. The Eagles have been there 4 straight years, have a lot of talent besides Gullett and to me Ballard looks beatable more so than years past. I think a win is very possible! What do you have?

 

The last time Johnson Central played Ballard, the JC players were all sophomores and the Ballard players included the likes of Quentin Snyder, Kelan Martin, etc. In that game the Bruins could not trap or pressure Braxton Blair and Shane Hall scored 28 pts in the first half (it took the 2nd half for Ballard to put a young JC team away). In that game Braxton got tired and the press wore down JC, but that was then and this is now.

 

This Ballard team will struggle pressing Blair (best dribbler in the state and will be the strongest player on the floor) and if he dosent get tired then that will be a moot point. This Ballard team also shoots alot of 3's and mid range jump shots. If those are falling it will be a long game for JC, but if they are not it could be tight. Ive seen Jalen Perry and Ballard play several times this season and they take and hit alot of "hero" shots without running a set offense (i.e. what they get is predicated off superior athleticism). If a few of those shots dont fall, then who knows, but they sure bailed out Ballard in the Regional Championship game.

 

Neither team has much of an inside game (the bigs for both teams get points off putbacks and have little offense run throgh them) so that is a push. Not to say the bigs arent good, but these teams are guard dominated.

 

Summary:

*JC has more experience

*Ballard has the better backcourt trio and best overall player in Perry

*JC has the better true point in Blair (handle pressure, dont turn it over, get others involved)

*Ballard has the better shooting team, but they have gotten cold in stretches (i.e. first quarter against Manual).

*JC has the better half court offense.

*Ballard has the better pressure D.

*Jalen Perry and Kyle Gullett dont get their 3's blocked so if one gets hot and the other is not that team has an advantage.

*Ballard has Ballard on the front of their chest, if you swap jerseys the players on Ballards team would still be favored, but more in the 8-9 point range rather than the 25+ it will be.

 

Prediction:

Johnson Central must shoot well and Blair must not get tired (his boxing over the summer will help - check out his videos on youtube - kid could be a professional boxer right now if he wanted). If this happens JC can win this game. Johnson Central has a 40% chance to win IMO.

 

Side Note: Its not like JC dosent have college players. Braxton Blair has given a verbal to ST. Catherines (Full Ride) and Gullett is narrowing his choices down to Coastal Carolina and Transy. Sophomore guard Mason Blair (cousin to Braxton) is also highly rated and will play college ball somewhere (rated low D1 atm). But thats why they play the game.

 

I will have full write up on Sunday with more insight. Hope this helps.

The last time Johnson Central played Ballard, the JC players were all sophomores and the Ballard players included the likes of Quentin Snyder, Kelan Martin, etc. In that game the Bruins could not trap or pressure Braxton Blair and Shane Hall scored 28 pts in the first half (it took the 2nd half for Ballard to put a young JC team away). In that game Braxton got tired and the press wore down JC, but that was then and this is now.

 

 

This Ballard team will struggle pressing Blair (best dribbler in the state and will be the strongest player on the floor) and if he dosent get tired then that will be a moot point. This Ballard team also shoots alot of 3's and mid range jump shots. If those are falling it will be a long game for JC, but if they are not it could be tight. Ive seen Jalen Perry and Ballard play several times this season and they take and hit alot of "hero" shots without running a set offense (i.e. what they get is predicated off superior athleticism). If a few of those shots dont fall, then who knows, but they sure bailed out Ballard in the Regional Championship game.

 

Neither team has much of an inside game (the bigs for both teams get points off putbacks and have little offense run throgh them) so that is a push. Not to say the bigs arent good, but these teams are guard dominated.

 

Summary:

*JC has more experience

*Ballard has the better backcourt trio and best overall player in Perry

*JC has the better true point in Blair (handle pressure, dont turn it over, get others involved)

*Ballard has the better shooting team, but they have gotten cold in stretches (i.e. first quarter against Manual).

*JC has the better half court offense.

*Ballard has the better pressure D.

*Jalen Perry and Kyle Gullett dont get their 3's blocked so if one gets hot and the other is not that team has an advantage.

*Ballard has Ballard on the front of their chest, if you swap jerseys the players on Ballards team would still be favored, but more in the 8-9 point range rather than the 25+ it will be.

 

Prediction:

Johnson Central must shoot well and Blair must not get tired (his boxing over the summer will help - check out his videos on youtube - kid could be a professional boxer right now if he wanted. If this happens JC can win this game. Johnson Central has a 40% chance to win IMO.

 

Side Note: Its not like JC dosent have college players. Braxton Blair have given a verbal to ST. Catherines (Full Ride) and Gullett is narrowing his choices down to Coastal Carolina and Transy. But thats why they play the game.

 

I will have full write up on Sunday with more insight. Hope this helps.

 

 

Johnson Central will get blown out in this game!

15th,

 

Thanks man for posting!

I agree with you and knew you would have some good insight. I think that if Central can "see the ball go through the net" early they will have a chance to pull the upset. They have to avoid a poor start. Is Ballard BIG? I watched the Region Championship against Manual and they crashed the boards on both ends. Douglas looked pretty tall. They did get a BIG break on the T at the end!:down:

 

Can't wait to see your Article on Sunday.

Johnson Central will get blown out in this game!

 

They very well could, but it would not suprise me in the least to see them win. Believe it or not, Ballard is a better matchup for JC than Manual would have been. Like I said, if you switch the jersey's you would probably say the same thing.

 

JC is not scared or intimidated by Ballard and these kids are no cinderalla story who will be happy just to be in RUPP. Ballard is the favorite, but when the ball rolled out at the state tournament draw it didnt say bye, it said 15th Region. This game will take alot out of Ballard physically and mentally. I sure hope they overlook JC.

15th,

 

Thanks man for posting!

I agree with you and knew you would have some good insight. I think that if Central can "see the ball go through the net" early they will have a chance to pull the upset. They have to avoid a poor start. Is Ballard BIG? I watched the Region Championship against Manual and they crashed the boards on both ends. Douglas looked pretty tall. They did get a BIG break on the T at the end!:down:

 

Can't wait to see your Article on Sunday.

 

Neither team has a big in the traditional sense, but your right in that Ballard crashes hard and uses their athleticism to get offensie rebounds. Kyle Gullett is 6'7'' and plays a guard position. Ballard has a 6'6'' kid and between the two these will be the biggest playes on the floor, but neither is a true big.

 

Another note: JC has an average ACT score of 29.5 and average GPA of 4.0 on their starting 5 and 4 of the 5 starters (Sophomore Mason Blair being the exception) have started over 120 games each and won 4 straight regional titles. Point = they know how to play and wont beat themselves. Correlation = Look for them to take or attempt to take alot of charges on Ballard and get a few over the back calls.

The Pack kid just might surprise a few people then. He has good size and a soft touch around the basket. He is good for a "field goal" or a few "extra points" for sure!!!:sneaky:

not ready to crown Ballard just yet but tough to believe they won't be playing on Sunday. Solid team bad draw of anyone in 1st round.

 

Ballard!!!!!

Kind of tough to see the correlation between GPA's and knowledge of the game. Plus, maybe Ballard's kids have similar academic standing. I'd be cautious in inferring a higher level of intelligence and/or basketball knowledge without background information. Point=my high school valedictorian had a 4.0 & a 34 on the ACT, but he couldn't hit a layup. The experience factor is a valid point. I can't imagine walking onto the court at Rupp for the first time.

Kind of tough to see the correlation between GPA's and knowledge of the game. Plus, maybe Ballard's kids have similar academic standing. I'd be cautious in inferring a higher level of intelligence and/or basketball knowledge without background information. Point=my high school valedictorian had a 4.0 & a 34 on the ACT, but he couldn't hit a layup. The experience factor is a valid point. I can't imagine walking onto the court at Rupp for the first time.

 

Don't you think that perhaps if you combined their past experience — some of JC's seniors have played on four straight region championship teams as well as big tourneys such as KOB — with their smarts, and the fact that their seniors have gone 96-38 in their careers, that the total package could mean something?

 

Ballard is Ballard. We know they're always a threat. This JC team can be dangerous, though. They won't be like a lot of mountain teams and go in there starry-eyed and just happy to be there. They've won a game at Rupp. If E'town's girls can lose, it can happen to Ballard's boys as well. Anything can happen.

Don't you think that perhaps if you combined their past experience — some of JC's seniors have played on four straight region championship teams as well as big tourneys such as KOB — with their smarts, and the fact that their seniors have gone 96-38 in their careers, that the total package could mean something?

 

Ballard is Ballard. We know they're always a threat. This JC team can be dangerous, though. They won't be like a lot of mountain teams and go in there starry-eyed and just happy to be there. They've won a game at Rupp. If E'town's girls can lose, it can happen to Ballard's boys as well. Anything can happen.

I like that JC gets it done in the classroom- but this game won't turn into a trivia competition at any point. Ballard has two starters who played significant minutes in a state final- that trumps any 15th regional final. E'towns loss was an eye opener indeed- Ballard won't take this or any sweet 16 game for granted. The last two wins versus two great teams was remarkable- but the state final loss two years ago was unforgettable. They'll be ready.

I like that JC gets it done in the classroom- but this game won't turn into a trivia competition at any point. Ballard has two starters who played significant minutes in a state final- that trumps any 15th regional final. E'towns loss was an eye opener indeed- Ballard won't take this or any sweet 16 game for granted. The last two wins versus two great teams was remarkable- but the state final loss two years ago was unforgettable. They'll be ready.

 

I think you're missing my point. Nobody's saying trivia prowess equals points on the board.

I think you're missing my point. Nobody's saying trivia prowess equals points on the board.

 

Any team that makes it this far gets my respect. Is the Gullet kid related to reds great Don Gullett?

Any team that makes it this far gets my respect. Is the Gullet kid related to reds great Don Gullett?

 

nope