1st Region Final Review

1. McCracken County – Coach Burlin Brower

BGP #9

2018-19 record: 27-3

District: 2

The Mustangs had a fantastic season. They started the year ranked as the number 5 team in the region and climbed throughout the year. Once they got to the number one spot, they never relinquished it. They opened the season winning their first 11 games. Their first loss was to Bergen Catholic (NJ) and it came at the Holiday Basketball Classic in Florida. The only Kentucky loss was to Graves County by 9 points on January 8. Since that loss the Mustangs have won 14 straight against KY teams.

Junior Jackson Sivills is the leader of this team as he is averaging 20.9 ppg and 7.7 rpg. He has made 62 three pointers on the season. Noah Dumas is another key player for the Mustangs averaging almost 13 ppg. He is shooting 36% from 3 point range this season. Trevor Winsett has added 9.3 ppg on the season. As a team, McCracken a main weapon for them is from beyond the arch where they are shooting an impressive 35% as a team and have made 168 on the season, which comes out to 5.6 per game.

McCracken will open district play against Community Christian and then should meet Paducah Tilghman in the 2nd District finals on Feb 21 at St. Mary.

2. Mayfield – Coach Chris Guhy

BPG #19

2018-19 record: 21-7

District: 3

Mayfield started the year as the number one team in region 1 and ranked in the top ten in the BGP preseason rankings. Last year they didn’t lose a regular season game to a Region 1 team, but couldn’t close out the tournament. This season hasn’t been as impressive, but they have closed the season on a good note. Mayfield dropped as low as number 3 after losing 3 of their first 5 games, including a one point loss to McCracken County. Throughout the season they have had hiccups, losing to Paducah Tilghman, Lafayette, and Lexington Christian, but they finished with impressive victories over Graves County and Marshall County.

The Cardinals have a trio of scorers to watch out for. Connor Guthrie is averaging 16.4 ppg and made more 3 points shots than 2 pt shots this season. His brother Carson almost averaged a double/double on the season (13.8 ppg, 9.7 rpg). While Carson isn’t as deadly from the outside, he knows his way around the rim. Desean Jones has also stepped up for Mayfield averaging almost 13 ppg. Mayfield had the highest scoring offense in region 1 averaging over 70 points per contest. They were also big from 3 point range, averaging 6.2 per game and hitting at a 38% clip. The Cardinals will play the winner of Graves County/Ballard Memorial for the district title on Feb 21.

3. Graves County – Coach Joshua Frick

2018-19 record: 21-8

District 3

The Eagles had a fantastic first half the season going 11-2 through the end of December. January had its ups and downs as well. First they lost to Mayfield, but then gave McCracken County their only loss to a KY team on the season. McCracken returned the favor last in January and Mayfield defeated them a second time last week. The Eagles have a trio of scoring threats as well this season. Jordyn Naranjo made big strides this year and averaged 17.1 ppg while hitting 38% from three point range. Ryan Mathis poured in 15.6 per game, while leading the team from the point. Jacob Savage added 13.5 ppg and 7.4 rpg.

The Eagles averaged 67.8 ppg on the season, second most in region 1. They are smaller than what they have been in year’s past, but they have good fundamental play that keeps games close against taller teams. Graves should win their opening 3rd district game easily against Ballard Memorial which will setup the District title game versus Mayfield which will be the third time they play. The game will be at Graves County.

4. Paducah Tilghman – Coach Roderick Thomas

2018-19 record: 14-10

District 2

Paducah Tilghman had high hopes and high expectations coming into this season. They had 2 very talented additions to make up for the huge losses from last year. Things got started at on the right foot as they soundly defeated Hopkinsville in the season opener. Things started to go south as they lost 4 out of 5 in mid December and then went up and down from there. Their biggest win of the season was a 66-64 victory versus Mayfield in late December. The Tornado seem to struggle against talented teams and they did well against equal or lesser teams. They did finish the season winning 4 of 5 games.

Thomas Rodriguez led Tilghman with 14.8 ppg while Michaeal Laster poured in 12.3 ppg and Avery Strayhorn added 10.6 ppg. Tilghman did shoot well from behind the 3 point line hitting 36% of their shots. The Tornado will play St. Mary, who they have soundly defeated twice this year, in the 2nd District tournament. Should they win that, which they should, they will play McCracken County on Feb 21 at St. Mary

5. Murray – Coach Dior Curtis

2018-19 record: 14-12

District 4

Murray had one of the tougher schedules in region 1 and it showed early on. They lost 4 of their first 5 games. They won the next three, and then dropped 4 in a row. Things took a nice turn after the holidays where the Tigers went 9-4 over the last 13 games. Murray has seemed to improve as the season progressed, and those games against tougher competition started to pay off. Hunter Utley and RaVichael Strickland are the many scoring threats for the Tigers as they both average 12 ppg and around 5 rpg. Murray is another team hitting 36% of their 3 point shots.

Murray won the regular season district title and therefore will get an automatic bid to the regional tournament. However they will play the winner of the Calloway County/Marshall County game for the district 4 tournament title on Feb 21.

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6. Marshall County – Terry Birdsong

2018-19 record: 12-17

District 4

Marshall County had huge hopes going into this season with the arrival of Zion Harmon, however, he never played a minute for the Marshalls, and they struggled throughout the season. They always seem to play teams close, but couldn’t get over the hump with so many of them. Jonathan Stokes led the Marshals with 15.8 ppg and Tyler Powell add 14 ppg. They hit almost 37% of their 3 point attempts on the season.

Marshall County will play a tough game on Tuesday versus Calloway County. The winner of that game will face Murray for the district 4 title. All games will be played at Calloway County.

7. Calloway County – Coach Brad Cleaver

2018-19 record: 11-17

District 4

The Lakers had an odd season this year. Things did not start well as Calloway lost of their first 10 games. Then things started to come together and they had big wins against Union Co, Hopkins Central, and Murray. They won 8 of their next 11 games to get close to a .500 record. But they couldn’t keep up the winning ways as they dropped 6 of their last 7 as they played top region 1 teams.

The Lakers were led by Chandler Steele and Cade Butler, each averaging over 13 ppg with Chandler also pulling down 8.7 rpg. They will host Marshall County, a team they lost to by 6 points last week, on Tuesday.

8 Carlisle County – Coach Brian O’Neil

2018-19 record: 16-13

District 1

Carlisle has a great record, but they had a very weak schedule, that is why they are ranked this low. They played very few quality teams outside region 1, and lost to all of them. In fact, they best win of the season for Carlisle was a 75-66 win over Lyon County from Region 2.

They were led in scoring throughout the season by Reese Anderson (15.5 ppg), Trey Wilson (14.4 ppg), and Blake Elder (10.1 ppg). They will host Hickman County on Monday to see who will play for the District 1 title on Friday

9. Fulton County – Coach Jamie Madding

2018-19 record: 14-12

District 1

The Pilots were one of the surprise teams in region 1 this year definitely improving as the season moved forward. Fulton County finished strong winning their last 5 games. Grant it Fulton County schedule is weaker than Carlisle’s but they weren’t expected to finish over .500 this season. Caleb Kimble led the Pilots with 14.5 ppg and Kahair Miller added 12.2. Fulton County will play Fulton City on Tuesday and the winner advances to the District Finals.

10. St. Mary – Coach Greg Overstreet

2018-19 record: 12-17

District 2

St. Mary lost 9 of their last 11 games to closeout the season. They were led by Colin Doss with 14.4 ppg and Joey Eggemeyer with 11.4 ppg. They will host Paducah Tilghman on Tuesday. If they can pull an upset, they will play the McCracken County, Community Christian winner.

11. Community Christian Paducah – Coach Daniel Durrett

2018-19 record: 8-20

District 2

The Warriors had their best season since 2015 as they won 8 games, the last being against Dawson Springs. They were led by Ben Carter with 16.6 ppg and Elijah Middleton with 14.4 ppg. They will play McCracken County on Monday night, and barring an enormous upset, their season will end. However, they have a lot to be proud of. It wasn’t long ago they hadn’t won a game for almost 2 full seasons.

13. Hickman County – Coach Wynn Harris

2018-19 record: 8-17

District 1

Hickman finished the season with a loss to Christian Fellowship. Its been a tough year for the Falcons who definitely expected to have a better season. The only scoring threat this season was Jackson Midyett who put in 13.9 ppg. They will play Carlisle County on Monday to see who advances to the District 1 title game.

12. Fulton City – Coach Jon Dillard

2018-19 record: 7-22

District 1

The Bulldogs lost their final 5 games to close out the season. They were led by Cameron Madding with 12.6 ppg and Brennen Walker with 10.2 ppg. They will play Fulton County on Tuesday to see who advances to District Title Game.

14. Ballard Memorial – Coach Marla Cooper

2018-19 record: 4-20

District 1

The Bombers had one of their toughest seasons on record. They had two players who averaged double digits this season, Drew Cox at 13.3 ppg and Dequin Donlow at 11.5 ppg. They now play a David vs Goliath game as they travel to Graves County to play.

Top 10 Players to Watch:

1. Jackson Sivills, McCracken County – Considered one of the best juniors in the state of Kentucky, clearly showed his talents this year. Averaged 20.9 ppg and 7.7 rpg. He also hit 41% of his three point shots.

2. Connor Guthrie, Mayfield – 2019 Player of the Year in Region 1. Averaged 16.4 ppg while making 88 three pointers (46.6%).

3. Jordan Naranjo, Graves County – Stepped up in a big way for the Eagles this year. Averaged 17.1 ppg and shot 38% from 3pt range. He also pulled down 5 rpg.

4. Jonathan Stokes, Marshall County – The Marshalls leading scorer with 15.8 ppg and leading rebounder with 10 rpg. Only player in region 1 to average a double/double for the season.

5. Carson Guthrie, Mayfield – Averaged almost 14 ppg and 10 rpg for the season with the Cardinals. Part of the big trio for Mayfield.

6. Ryan Mathis, Graves County – Best point guard in the region, averaged 15.6 ppg and made 60 three point shots on the season.

7. Thomas Rodriguez, Paducah Tilghman – Had big shoes to fill and did so by averaging 14.8 ppg and hitting almost 42% of his 3 pt shots.

8. Jacob Savage, Graves County – Filled in down low for Graves. Averaged 13.5 ppg and 7.4 rpg

9. Tyler Powell, Marshall County – Powell complimented Stokes well. Averaged 14 ppg hitting 37.7% of this 3 pt shots.

10. Ben Carter, Community Christian – Averaged 16.6 ppg and 9.7 rpg for the Warriors. All while shooting more than 42% from three.