1) Warren Central (1-0) - 12/3 72-56 W Wayne County

Previous Rank: 1

This Week: 12/10 vs. Owensboro, 12/14 vs. Henderson County (at Barren County)

 

The back to back region champions opened with a win in their home opener for the fifth straight season, knocking off the always game Wayne County Cardinals by a 16 point margin. Dre Boyd fouled out but had a co-team high 18 points. Tay Smith also had 18 points, fueled by a 5/12 performance from three. 3rd Region favorite Owensboro should provide a much better opponent this week.

 

2) Bowling Green (1-1) - 12/3 61-69 L at Madisonville-North Hopkins, 12/7 63-46 W Bardstown (at Muhlenberg County)

Previous Rank: 2

This Week: 12/10 at #4 Glasgow, 12/13 vs. South Laurel (at Jackson County), 12/14 vs. Pikeville (at Jackson County)

 

The Purples were hampered by a significant size disadvantage in their opener against BGP-top 10 opponent Madisonville, and fell behind by as many as 16 before rallying to make a game of it. They received a couple of reinforcements on Saturday when they took on Bardstown, as football players Conner Cooper and Dez Wilson returned. The Purples weren't particularly sharp offensively in that one, but locked down everyone but Traynor, coasting to an easy win. This week they'll have a top matchup on paper with Glasgow, who they haven't lost to in 11 years.

 

3) Greenwood (1-1) - 12/3 70-76 L Owensboro Catholic, 12/6 85-70 W #3 Glasgow

Previous Rank: 4

This Week: 12/10 at #14 Russell County, 12/12 vs. #8 Allen County-Scottsville, 12/14 at #12 Clinton County

 

Cade Stinnett and Noah Stansbury got the Gators out to a great start to the season. They fell short in a comeback attempt against Owensboro Catholic, but Stinnett dropped 20 and Stansbury dropped 19 in that one. They reversed roles in their win over Glasgow, as Stansbury poured in 21 points and was 3/5 from behind the arc - Stinnett had 17. The Gators absolutely walloped Glasgow from the perimeter, going 10/25 from three, and were never seriously challenged. Greenwood had four players in double digits in each game, with Ben Carroll and Marc Grant joining Stinnett and Stansbury. The Gators are for real, and the teams ahead of them will surely take notice.

 

4) Glasgow (1-2) - 12/2 51-45 W at #12 Monroe County, 12/6 70-85 L at #4 Greenwood, 12/7 81-83 OT L at Campbellsville

Previous Rank: 3

This Week: 12/10 vs. #2 Bowling Green, 12/13 at #14 Russell County

 

The week was no positive for Glasgow. They struggled in their district win over Monroe County, and lost sharpshooter Tucker Kirkpatrick to a knee injury - one that may eliminate him for the season. That means Nick Sorrell and Jaden Franklin will have to carry even more of the load - Sorrell had 33 against Greenwood and Franklin had 22. They will desperately need a third option to emerge. They don't get a respite as they host Bowling Green on Tuesday - it will take them time to regroup.

 

5) South Warren (2-0) - 12/3 87-68 W #10 Allen County-Scottsville, 12/6 73-64 W at Barren County

Previous Rank: 8

This Week: 12/10 at #11 Franklin-Simpson, 12/13 vs. #13 Warren East, 12/14 at #7 Logan County

 

No one in the region had a better week than South Warren. We thought they could be a dark horse, but they made statements immediately. Jace Carver was relentless in the opener, with 24 points and shooting 4/9 from outside. Tayshaun Jones also posted a strong 20 point effort. The Spartans exploded for 31 points in the first quarter of that one, racing out to a 19 point lead and never leading by less than 12 after. Against Barren County, they weren't quite as dominant early, falling behind by seven in the first quarter and still down five at the half. South slowly reeled them in, taking advantage of some Trojan foul trouble to seize the lead entering the fourth quarter, and closing the game out from the foul line. It was South Warren's first win over Barren County since their inaugural season, breaking a seven game losing streak in the series. They open district play this Friday when they host Warren East, and have a nice benchmark game against Logan County on Saturday.

 

6) Barren County (1-1) - 12/3 85-47 W Green County, 12/6 64-73 L #8 South Warren

Previous Rank: 5

This Week: 12/13 vs. #10 Monroe County, 12/14 vs. Hopkinsville

 

The other side of the coin in that big game, the Trojans opened with a big win over Green County, as expected. Against South, Bandy had 24 points to lead the Trojans, but missed a huge portion of the third quarter along with other primary scorer Aden Nyekan, and that's where Barren County lost control of the game. Barren especially struggled on the boards in that one once those two went to the bench. Jacob Shaw has proven to be a strong addition through two games, transferring in from Glasgow Christian. The Trojans will look to rebound in district play against Monroe County on Friday.

 

7) Logan County (0-2) - 12/3 57-68 L Muhlenberg County, 12/7 63-67 L Bullitt East (at Campbellsville)

Previous Rank: 6

This Week: 12/13 vs. #11 Franklin-Simpson, 12/14 vs. #5 South Warren

 

It was not a strong open for the Cougars, who started last season 6-0 (or 5-1 if you count the actual result they had that was wiped by forfeit). Woodard had 24 to lead Logan County in their opening loss to Muhlenberg County, complimented by Jose Nazario's 18 points. They posted a strong effort against a Bullitt East team that had knocked off Scott County earlier in the week. They'll face the first of two crucial district contests with Franklin-Simpson before a tough back to back with a stronger than expected South Warren squad.

 

8) Allen County-Scottsville (0-2) - 12/3 68-87 L at #8 South Warren, 12/7 76-78 L at LaRue County

Previous Rank: 10

This Week: 12/10 vs. Adair County, 12/12 at #3 Greenwood, 12/13 at #17 Cumberland County

 

The Patriots were on the wrong side of that opening blitz against South Warren, getting as close as 12 points in the second half with five minutes remaining in the contest. Michael Smith was a perfect 7/7 from the field in the game to lead the Patriots with 17 points. Mason Shirley, widely expected to lead them in scoring this season, chipped in with 16. They had better luck in a tight loss to LaRue County as they scorched the nets for 59% shooting in the first half. The problem was that the Hawks shot 61% themselves. They trailed by 14 entering the final quarter but were right there at the end. Jax Cooper had 22 and Owen Stamper had 21 in that one.

 

9) Metcalfe County (2-0) - 12/3 69-61 W #11 Warren East, 12/6 58-54 W #12 Monroe County

Previous Rank: 13

This Week: 12/10 at #17 Cumberland County, 12/13 vs. #12 Clinton County

 

Dating back to last season, the Hornets are no 7-6 in their last 13 games. That may not seem like a big deal, but for a program that was 4-25 just two seasons ago, it very much is. Their opening win over Warren East snapped a seven game losing streak to the Raiders. Peyton Dial led the Hornets in that contest with 24 points, and Boston Devore chipped in 18. They followed that with their first win over old district rival Monroe County since 2011, a span of 14 straight losses. That, combined with losses by some of the other teams ranked around them, catapults them into our region top 10 for the first time ever. They have a big week ahead with two district games - especially that game against Clinton County. If the Hornets can win that one, then we can take them seriously as a real threat to win that district.

 

10) Monroe County (1-2) - 12/2 45-51 L #3 Glasgow, 12/3 67-59 W #7 Franklin-Simpson, 12/6 54-58 L at #13 Metcalfe County

Previous Rank: 12

This Week: 12/10 at #12 Clinton County, 12/13 at #6 Barren County, 12/14 vs. Edmonson County (at Barren County)

 

It was an up and down week for the Falcons. They shot only 30.6% from the field in their opening loss to Glasgow, which was a tight game, so a slight moral victory. They followed that with a bit of an upset over Franklin-Simpson. Grayson Rich had 19 in that one as they rebounded to shoot 48.8% overall and 6/12 from three. But the closing loss to Metcalfe County was a surprise - as mentioned they had not lost to Metcalfe County in nearly nine years. They face their rival from their old district when they visit Clinton County, but of far greater importance is their current district matchup against Barren County on Friday.

 

11) Franklin-Simpson (1-1) - 12/3 59-67 L at #12 Monroe County, 12/6 46-45 W at #9 Clinton County

Previous Rank: 7

This Week: 12/10 vs. #5 South Warren, 12/13 at #7 Logan County

 

Franklin-Simpson almost had a REAL bad week. Andreyous Miller was dominant in the loss to Monroe County, dropping 33 points, shooting 11 of 17 from the floor. They then visited Clinton County and trailed 38-12 with just over 2 minutes remaining in the third quarter. Suddenly, they flipped a switch and flipped the script, stunning the Bulldogs with a 34-7 run and completing the comeback when Miller scored on a putback with 4 seconds remaining. Put another way, Franklin-Simpson averaged .55 points per minute in the first 22 minutes of the game. They increased that by nearly seven times (3.4) in the last ten minutes. They won't be able to get away with that in two tough games this week, including a crucial road trip to Logan County.

 

12) Clinton County (2-1) - 12/2 56-46 W at Casey County, 12/6 45-46 L #7 Franklin-Simpson, 12/7 54-44 W North Hardin (at Central Hardin)

Previous Rank: 9

This Week: 12/10 vs. #10 Monroe County, 12/13 at #9 Metcalfe County, 12/14 vs. #3 Greenwood

 

That loss to Franklin really spoiled a solid week, as the Bulldogs still emerged with a winning record in their first three games. However, the scoring is clearly going to be a concern. They had only eight games out of 32 played a year ago where they failed to score more than the 56 point total that they have as a season-high through three games. They lost a lot of scoring to graduation, and at least early, it appears they are struggling to find a spark.

 

13) Warren East (0-2) - 12/3 61-69 L at #13 Metcalfe County, 12/6 54-58 L Daviess County

Previous Rank: 11

This Week: 12/10 vs. North Hardin, 12/13 at #5 South Warren

 

The Raiders have had documented issues with their record from January on, but they have rarely started poorly in December lately. This is just their second 0-2 start since the 2010/11 season. Ryan Carter (15.5 PPG) and Kaleb Matlock (13.5 PPG) are off to solid starts, but one area of issue that is glaring is the three point shooting. The Raiders shot 33.6% from the perimeter last season, but are just 11/38 (28.9%) from outside so far. They face district foe South Warren on Friday - they have lost 11 in a row in district play.

 

14) Russell County (1-1) - 12/3 50-66 L at Somerset, 12/7 60-30 W Garrard County (at Mercer County)

Previous Rank: 14

This Week: 12/10 vs. #3 Greenwood, 12/13 vs. #4 Glasgow

 

The Lakers lost 10 of their last 11 games last year, failing to reach the region tournament for the first time as a member of Region 4. Ryan Coffey (17), Briley Hadley (15), and Scott Hamm all reached double figures in their loss to Somerset, but the team had a terrible night from the field (36.5%), three (21.4%), and the line (52.9%). They face possibly the toughest region slate this week.

 

15) Russellville (2-0) - 12/2 57-45 W Greenbrier (TN), 12/7 56-54 W Adair County

Previous Rank: 16

This Week: 12/12 at East Robertson (TN), 12/14 at McLean County

 

New head coach Carlos Quarles is unbeaten as the top man, as his Panthers start the year 2-0. The team won only eight games all of last season and started 0-4, so already, things have improved. The Panthers moved away from their traditional scheduling practices this year, and won't play a district game until January. They'll look to solidify some momentum before tackling the important games.

 

16) Todd County Central (2-0) - 12/2 62-43 W Hopkins County Central, 12/6 60-57 W at Ballard Memorial

Previous Rank: 17

This Week: 12/14 vs. Whitesville Trinity

 

Similarly, Todd County Central is already off to a much better start than a season ago under returning HC Dennis Pardue, who coached the team back at the beginning of the 2000s. They won just five games a year ago, so already they have to be psyched with a 2-0 mark. That snapped a 15 game losing streak overall. They too have time to build some momentum, with no district games until January.

 

17) Cumberland County (0-3) - 12/3 57-69 L at Adair County, 12/6 59-70 L at Campbellsville, 12/7 58-62 L Edmonson County

Previous Rank: 15

This Week: 12/10 vs. #9 Metcalfe County, 12/13 at #8 Allen County-Scottsville

 

The news is not so positive for Cumberland County. They fell in their final six contests a season ago, and now extend that streak to nine straight losses. They'll get a chance to turn that around as they open district play on Tuesday.

Bump.

Already several significant upsets this week. Warren Central and Bowling Green haven't given us any reason to panic as of yet, but below them, it is basically a free for all so far.