Mercer County 80 Meade County 63

[First]

Mercer wins the Farmers National Bank Clash of the Titans by beating third region favorite Meade County. Mercer improves to 11-0 and Meade drops to 10-1.

 

If you haven't seen Meade, they are very good. They have an extremely athletic interior player with great hands and a nice touch and their perimeter players are in range when they cross half court. Think Trinity.

 

Mercer with 4 starters in double figures and the 5th starter scored 9. In a time where there's so much "me" basketball, it's sure fun to watch a team win at a high level by sharing the ball.

[CoachNormanDale]

Really enjoy this Mercer team. Hope they continue with the success.

[jumpingj]

When will they play some competition. Looks like SL is only real game.

[First]

When will they play some competition. Looks like SL is only real game.

 

So it's your opinion that the 13th region is that much stronger than the 3rd?

 

Hey, I would've loved to have seen them at the KOB. But, Meade is the 3rd region favorite and after watching them tonight, I feel confident you'll see them at Rupp. Mercer beat them by 17, but it was 22 when the starters came out. Pretty good win over a team that's favored to win the third.

 

Also, if both teams win their first game at Gateway next week, Mercer will face the 10th region favorite.

Edited December 24, 2015 by First

[stay_strong]

Clay county and South Laurel out of the 13th is double digits better than anyone in the 3rd.

[gchs_uk9]

@First,

 

I don't think the Mercer schedule is bad at all, but I do think there are some better traditional "name" wins this season than "real" wins, if that makes sense. Shelby County, West Jessamine, and Lincoln County are all traditionally strong teams that aren't quite as good this year. Casey County, East Jessamine, and Dixie Heights either aren't as good as expected or aren't as good as they've been in past years. Meade County and South Laurel, however, are both very good teams.

 

This is not a knock on Mercer. They'll have some big games coming after Christmas. But the early season schedule may have looked a little better on November 24th than it does on December 24th. Either way, though, Mercer is rolling through everyone they've played and rightfully should be considered among the best in Kentucky.

[First]

Clay county and South Laurel out of the 13th is double digits better than anyone in the 3rd.

 

So you've made it out all the way out west to see Meade play?

 

They really surprised me tonight. They clearly are better than you think. Unbelievable shooters and a great system, enhanced by a super athletic 6'6" kid in the middle. Only time will tell, but keep an eye on them. They will be in the top 20. And having seen both up close, they'd give South Laurel all they'd want. And I'm of the opinion that SL should be in the 12-14 range.

[Griffster]

Mercer needs to play somebody relevant. The thought of getting exposed scares them.

[First]

Yeah, I think Coach Cook is working on changing the schedule right now. Since that's possible and all....

 

As I always say, if you don't have haters, you ain't relevant. Point proven.

[thunder1]

Mercer County can play with anybody in the state. They're that good. I also would say if there's a better sophomore in the state of Kentucky better than Trevon Faulkner, please let me know when he plays again!

[stay_strong]

So you've made it out all the way out west to see Meade play?

 

They really surprised me tonight. They clearly are better than you think. Unbelievable shooters and a great system, enhanced by a super athletic 6'6" kid in the middle. Only time will tell, but keep an eye on them. They will be in the top 20. And having seen both up close, they'd give South Laurel all they'd want. And I'm of the opinion that SL should be in the 12-14 range.

 

I agree 100% with South being in the 15 range, and I also agree with Mercer being that good, but Meade isn't. And if you have not seen Clay this year, it will blow your mind how good Smith and Farmer are. You would be hard pressed to find 2 better guards in the state outside of Goodin and Sloan on the same team. But we will see, whoever draws the 13th this year had better lace them up tight at Rupp, cause either of those are good enough to beat anyone in the state.

[First]

I'm not arguing with you regarding Clay and SL. I think both are top 15 and very well could be top 10.

 

I have seen both Smith and Farmer play. Different players but both very good. But, I don't consider Farmer a guard. He's much more of a wing IMO.

 

I feel just as strongly about Mercer's backcourt of Hager and Faulkner. And they complement each other very well.

[PurplePride92]

Mercer County does not have a challenging schedule. Let's not kid ourselves. Insults our intelligence. Mercer County will have a harder time winning the 12th Region than they will making it to the Sweet 16 Final Four. And I say that without seeing the Sweet 16 bracket.

 

South Laurel and Clay County are both better than Meade County and by all accounts the 13th>3rd Region this season. I mean seriously, South Laurel loses to Mercer County by 1 point and folks say they are one the top 14 of all schools in the state.

[ApolloFan98]

Right now, Meade County is the clear cut favorite to win the 3rd region. It gets VERY muddled after them as far as contenders go. That said, the talent in the 3rd region is as down as ive seen it in a very very long time. I would probably have to go back 10 years or more to find a season with less overall talent. There are some promising young players around the region, but they have little to no varsity experience and it shows early on.

[First]

Pretty sure this was debated, at length, in a thread a couple of days ago. As was said then, their schedule ramps up considerably down the stretch. Much like Boyle last year, the regional tournament will do more to "prepare" them for state than their regular season schedule - IF they are fortunate enough to win the 12th. It turned out pretty well for Boyle!

 

And, like Boyle last year, whether they're good enough to win region and make a run at RUPP will be determined by whether they are good enough to do so as opposed to their schedule during the first half of their season. Period.

 

And please keep in mind that, though they did "only" beat SL by 1, it was their PG's (Hager) first game back after missing 2 weeks due to illness. He was less than 50% and was largely ineffective. If you don't think that's material, then you haven't watched Mercer play.