8th Region Week 8 Review: A New Number One Rises to the Top

By Colonelmike

 

Wow. I thought Week 7 was exciting (and it was)…but Week 8 brought everyone new extremes of highs / lows / wins / losses / upsets / rallies / injuries and pretty much one of the biggest adrenaline rushes of the season so far.

 

Among the news that defined this past week:

• South Oldham bounced back from two close losses to #9 Collins and #13 Oldham County, putting the wrath of their offense to work….South scored 98, 95, and 89 points(!!) in three victorious routs this past week…

• Grant County got a signature win this week, perhaps signifying that they are “ready to rumble” with a win over Simon Kenton – setting up the Braves to earn the #1 seed in the 32nd with a win over Walton-Verona this week.

• Simon Kenton immediately bounced back from that loss to stun #9-ranked Collins, the top-ranked team in the region, in the Henry County Classic.

• North Oldham put up 74 points on Anderson County – which had been allowing just 41 points a game – in a 74-31 rout. Nobody had scored over 59 points against Anderson previously…

• Anderson County turned around three nights later and came within a couple of points and a few seconds of upsetting Collins in Shelbyville.

• Will the real Anderson County please stand up?

• Woodford County – winners of 11 of 13 games – suffered a big loss when star center Hunter Penn went out with an injury against Walton-Verona. The Jackets haven’t been the same since, dropping two straight.

• Gallatin County went to the State All-A Classic and, although they lost their opening game to Somerset, the Wildcats put on a show, rallying from 16 points down in the first half to eventually take the lead. The Cats led into the fourth period before fading in the final four minutes.

• Spencer County had a rally for the ages in the Henry County Classic against St. X. Down 52-26 at halftime, the Bears came within 3 points with 3 minutes to play, before running out of steam and falling by 7 at 82-75.

 

In some ways, the upcoming Region 8 tournament is shaping up a little bit like 1979. In 1979, the tournament featured one upset after another – and though the eventual winner was an extraordinary Grant County team that had won 30 games, it was still a bit of a surprise as most had expected Shelby County (the defending state champions) or perhaps Oldham County to be headed to the Sweet 16.

 

To go back in history for a moment….in 1979, the Shelby County Rockets were the pre-season picks to repeat as 8th Region champs, and possibly to repeat as state champs. The 1978 Kentucky state titleists returned MVP Charles Hurt for his senior year. Hurt, arguably as dominant a player as has ever played in the 8th Region, had signed to play at the University of Kentucky, where he would ultimately enjoy a standout career. Oldham County was widely regarded as the #2 pick in the region, but the “smart money” was on Shelby.

 

During the district tournaments, injury-riddled Oldham County was upset in the District 31 finals by Carroll County, led by all-star forward Curt Robertson. This was the first upset that played a big part in the crazy way the region tournament would eventually play out. This sent Oldham into the region tournament as a runner-up, meaning they would draw one of the other district champions. As luck would have it, Oldham drew Shelby.

 

The New Castle gym was filled to standing room only when the Colonels and the Rockets clashed in round 1. By halftime, the game was essentially over. Todd Stockdale had led a furious Oldham attack, and the Colonels were up by 23 points at the break. They would hold off a furious Shelby rally in the second half to win by 9 and advance to the semi-finals. That was the first big upset.

 

The second upset happened in the semifinals, when underdog Scott County, a solid team but one without the athletes Oldham had, employed a slow-down strategy against the Colonels. The ball-hawking strategy worked; Scott kept the game in the forties and edged Oldham by a couple of points to make the finals.

 

In the championship, the favored team finally got a win. The two tournament “survivors” – Grant County and Scott County – slugged it out. Grant County – a strong team that had largely flown under the radar while Shelby and Oldham got most of the publicity – seized the brass ring, bouncing the Cardinals to win the region 8 championship.

 

Now….I told this story to paint the following scenario… the 8th Region tournament is beginning to shape up truly as a tournament in which any team can win on any given night. “Favorites” may be a term that is used / misused as “favorites” may get sidelined early and often. District favorites may find themselves going as runner-ups as Oldham County did in 1979. Region favorites will be challenged in every game. Even deciding who the favorites are may be quite a task on any given night. The top-ranked team could go home on night #1 without the game being a major upset. By the time we get to the finals, the championship may be decided by teams that aren’t even in the top five of the rankings I’m presenting, below, in this article.

 

Perhaps I should just be flipping a coin instead of spending so much time researching, watching, and interviewing.

 

This week, we find the rankings start to twist a bit. Some of the teams move up this week – past teams that had previously beaten them. This is a reflection of two things….where I see these teams all trending (i.e., team A may have lost to team B in December, but since then, team A has really improved much more than team B), and where they stand “right now”. In some cases, injuries are negatively impacting a team’s ranking, and that’s because I’m not ranking teams based on projections of what they might do, but rather, on where they are if the tournament was held today. If a key player is out, I’ve placed the team in these rankings based on how they look to me without that player.

 

Forgive my eagerness – but I can’t wait! The one thing I do know is this – this Region 8 tournament will be one for the ages and certainly not one to miss.

 

On to this week’s rankings:

 

1 – Oldham County (18-2) Last week: #2 Bluegrasspreps.com state ranking: #13 RPI: #7 .67356 Oldham County’s strength-of-schedule is only the seventh-toughest in the 8th Region, when the Colonels’ opponents’ winning percentage is compiled, but there’s a lot to be said about the consistency of this Oldham County team, which is riding a region-best 9 game winning streak after slamming North Oldham, 80-65, last Friday and besting Central Hardin, 63-49, on Saturday.

 

That’s not to say Oldham’s schedule has exactly been weak. The Colonels already own victories over several region contenders: Spencer County, South Oldham, North Oldham, Gallatin County, and Grant County. The Colonels also own victories over Danville, one of the top teams in the 12th region, Beechwood, one of the top 9th region squads, Paintsville, the hottest team in the 15th Region, and 15-win North Bullitt.

 

The consistency, however, is what’s becoming more and more the trademark of this team, along with the multiple ways Oldham’s shown they can beat opponents.

 

Oldham is second in scoring in the 8th Region at 71.5 ppg, and the Colonels’ scoring is actually on an upward trend – Oldham is averaging 72.1 ppg over the last 8 contests. Oldham shoots well – 48.2% overall, 38.0% from beyond the arc (135 of 355), and 70.5% at the stripe. Four Colonels are averaging in double digits, and every game brings a new leading scorer it seems. Four Colonels are hitting over 80% at the charity stripe. From the perimeter, all seven players who have taken over 5 three point attempts are hitting over 35% from beyond the arc. Three players are hitting over 50% from the field.

 

Defensively, Oldham is one of the stingiest teams in the 8th, surrendering just 56.6 ppg.

Additionally, Oldham County – which has played just six home games – is 12-2 on the road or at a neutral site.

 

The Colonels have lost just one game to a Kentucky school.

 

As the other squads have stumbled here and there, Oldham just marches on. It’s simply become impossible to keep Oldham County from this spot.

 

Major upcoming battles still loom, that will give Oldham County the chance to prove they belong here. 6th Region power PRP and 5th Region power LaRue County are both ahead, as well as critical 8th Region showdowns with Simon Kenton (2/6/2020 in Buckner) and #9-ranked Collins (2/11/2020 in Shelbyville). Both the SK and Collins games will be broadcast on The Pegasus Sports Network - PSN.

 

Oldham County will honor the 40th anniversary of the 1980 Colonel squad that finished 31-3 and finished as champions of the 8th Region this Friday during the matchup with longtime rival Shelby County. That squad’s record is tied for the winningest season in OCHS history.

 

This week: 1/28/2020 at Pleasure Ridge Park 1/31/2020 Shelby County 2/1/2020 vs. Tates Creek (2 pm ET)

 

2 – Collins (17-4) Last week: #1 bluegrasspreps.com state ranking: #9 RPI: #6 .67523 The Titans had an up-and-down week last week, winning two of three games.

Collins has played a brutal schedule, and has fared pretty well. Their opponents have a winning percentage of .630, reflecting the toughest schedule played in the 8th region so far this year. Collins has 3 wins over Top 20 teams; beating then top-20 North Laurel by 19, #8 Madisonville-North Hopkins by 1, and defeating #15 South Oldham by 1. While two of those wins were by the narrowest of margins, it’s worth noting that Collins also lost to #11 Bourbon County by just 2, to #1 Ballard by 7 points, and #4 Male by only 11.

 

Last week, however, Collins faced all sides of the competitive coin.

 

The Titans began the week with a resounding 73-39 win over a pretty solid Boyle County team from the 12th. Coming on the heels of two large-margin victories over Spencer County and Shelby County, and a 1-point victory over #16 South Oldham on the road, it appeared that Collins was hitting its stride just in time for the final third of the season.

 

But Friday brought the train nearly to a screeching halt. Anderson County rode a stubborn defensive effort to a near-upset of their district rivals from Shelbyville. The Bearcats ultimately had the ball, down three, in the final ten seconds of the game. The Titans held on to defeat Anderson, 41-36, but the margin was a surprise, especially coming on the heels of Anderson’s 74-31 loss at the hands of North Oldham.

 

The Titans shot well – 51.5% - in the win, but hit only 4 of 14 threes and went to the line only 3 times (hitting all three). Dayvion McKnight was the only Titan in double figures with 16 points – but he had more points than Collins had rebounds (total: 14).

 

On Saturday, in the Henry County Classic, the Titans seemed to have put aside the Anderson game, and the team played inspired and played well. The team exuded energy against the Simon Kenton Pioneers, and only late – when fouls began to claim victims, including Dayvion McKnight, who fouled out – did the Titans find themselves down by double digits. A furious rally brought Collins ultimately to within four points, but the Pioneers iced the game at the line to win, 76-72.

 

Collins will look to regain some momentum in their final eight games. Some key games remain against #7 McCracken County, #4 Male, and #13 Oldham County. The Titans will have the opportunity to regain their momentum and their status as 8th Region favorites with a strong showing.

 

This week: 1/28/2020 vs Male 1/31/2020 vs. Woodford County

 

3 – South Oldham (16-6) Last week: #3 Bluegrasspreps.com state ranking: #16 RPI: #22 .63186 It was not a good week to play the Dragons.

 

After falling to both teams ranked in front of them two weeks ago, the Dragons took out their frustrations on three teams last week, averaging 94 points per game in wins over North Bullitt, Christian Academy of Louisville, and Woodford County.

 

South decimated their opponents with an avalanche of points, blasting North Bullitt, 98-51, CAL 95-71, and Woodford County, 89-62.

 

The Dragons shot between 57% and 60% in all three games, hit a combined 38 of 83 from beyond the arc (45.8%), and connected on 46 of 55 free throws (83.6%). South had no fewer than 10 made threes in each game, and was an impressive 15 of 15 at the stripe versus CAL.

 

Head coach Steve Simpson said it was all really pretty simple.

 

“We started looking for each other and making the extra pass,” he said via email on Sunday.

 

Senior Seth Johnson scored 22 points or more in each game, averaging 25 ppg during the stretch. Luke Morrison averaged 23.3 ppg and also eclipsed 22 points in all three contests. The “Big Two” got strong support; five other Dragons each scored in double digits in at least one of the three games.

 

The Dragons continue to shoot well from everywhere on the floor; they hit 50% overall from the floor and are hitting an amazing 41.8% from beyond the arc – despite having taken a whopping 324 attempts beyond the arc. But perhaps the most impressive stat is the free throw stat. South is hitting 73.4% at the line as a team; seven players are connecting on over 70% of their free throws, including all five starters. That’s a recipe for success in a region that appears headed for an epic showdown in every game in the region tournament.

 

Along the way, the defense deserved some props, too; North Bullitt came into the game with South averaging about 70 ppg and the Dragons held the Eagles to just 51 points.

 

South has a relatively light schedule left to play. The Dragons travel to play arch-rival North Oldham in Goshen this week, and that one will be intense. But with no implications on the post-season district seedings, some of the pressure to win will be lessened. The two coaches may not show all their cards in a game that they don’t have to win – regardless of the rivalry.

 

After that, South’s biggest remaining obstacle would appear to be a DeSales team that owns a win over Butler and who played a one-loss Elizabethtown team to a four point game.

 

Besides those two – North Oldham and DeSales – South should be heavily favored in their remaining games.

 

This week, South kicks off a four-game road trip against their rivals from Goshen, KY:

1/31/2020 at North Oldham (broadcast on The Pegasus Sports Network - PSN)

 

4 – Simon Kenton (13-7) Last week: #6 RPI: #48 .59327 Simon Kenton may have lost the #1 seed in the 32nd district this past week, but the Pioneers also may have earned the biggest win within 8th Region play so far this year.

 

SK’s Trent Steiner was definitely pleased after the big win over Collins on Saturday:

 

“Any time you get a win like that, it’s good,” he remarked in a phone interview afterward. “It really didn’t matter who we played. We just needed a win.”

 

“It’s a lot better than losing.”

 

Still, Steiner cautioned against assigning too much importance to the victory.

 

“(Victories) on January 25th don’t win championships,” he added. “Nobody’s ever won the (region) championship in January.”

 

Still, Steiner has to be pleased with the way the Pioneers are playing now. The SK team I watched play on Saturday was what I was expecting from the Pioneers this season, but injuries had kept the team from reaching that potential to date.

 

SK went 2-1 overall last week. They beat Williamstown, 78-36, in a district seeding game. Jeremy Davis was the only Pioneer to reach double figures, but he had a monster game, scoring 27 points and hitting 8 of 13 three pointers. The Pioneers followed that with the upset loss to Grant County, 74-70, before the bounceback win over Collins, 76-72.

 

The loss to Grant County puts the Braves in the driver’s seat for the #1 seed in district 32; Grant can clinch that with a win over Walton-Verona this week.

 

The win over Collins, however, may have done wonders for the psyche of a Simon Kenton team that has had the talent, but no signature win to show for it this year. SK had previously just missed on getting wins over two top-10 teams, falling to Madisonville-North Hopkins by just 5 points and Collins by 8 in an earlier matchup.

 

This time, the Pioneers delivered. And they put on quite a show, hitting 63.2% from the floor against one of the best defenses in the region. Kelly Niece showed that he may finally be back to nearly 100% with a shooting display that led to a game-high 39 points. Davis again was “lights-out” from beyond the arc, hitting 7 of 12 threes and contributing 21 points. The team as a whole hit 11 of 18 from three-point land.

 

Over the past three games, SK has hit 32 of 71 threes for 45.1% - Davis alone is 18 of 33 during that span for a staggering 54.5%. The Pioneers are also hitting their free throws; hitting 34 of 46 during the three game stretch for 73.9%.

 

Logan Schwartz, who injured his ankle on January 3rd against Anderson County, also appears to be back to speed for the Pioneers.

 

SK moves up two spots into this week’s Top 4.

 

Simon Kenton moves into a four game road trip, starting this week at Boone County, where the Pioneers will be heavily favored. But from there, it gets significantly harder, as SK will travel to #3 Covington Catholic on 1/31, District 31 favorite Gallatin County on 2/4, and #13-ranked Oldham County on 2/6.

 

The Pioneers then will play Scott County in a neutral site game in Lexington, before closing out the regular season campaign with four straight home games.

 

This week: 1/28/2020 at Boone County 1/31/2020 at #3 Covington Catholic

 

In the Hunt… All of the teams in this second tier have question marks that must be answered – but if those questions are resolved, these teams can make big runs.

 

5 – North Oldham (9-7) Last week: #7 RPI: #94 .54482 – The Mustangs are back on the upswing after a solid week in which they manhandled Anderson County and Henry County, while losing only to the region’s top-ranked Oldham County Colonels.

 

North has now won four of their last six games. Granted, the Mustangs were solid favorites in two of those games – Valley and Shelby County – and they were largely expected to beat Henry County. But the manner in which North defeated Anderson County, and, to a lesser extent, Henry County, was indeed impressive. And – after a poor start against the Colonels – North played Oldham County to what was essentially a stand-off the rest of the way.

 

North opened last week with a stunner. Facing the Anderson County Bearcats – who had lost just three games to that point, and who led the state in fewest points allowed per game at 41 points per contest – North had an opportunity to make a statement. In the end, the Mustangs made that statement.

 

North punished the Anderson County defense for 74 points – 15 more than anyone else had scored against the Bearcats this season – while at the same time making some defensive noise of its own, holding Anderson County to a season-low 31 points. North shot 56% from the floor, hit 12 of 22 threes, and was 6 of 7 at the line.

 

On Friday, the Mustangs came back down to earth against Oldham County. The Colonels raced out to an early lead and never looked back, defeating North, 80-65. Facing arguably the best defense in the region, North had (unofficially) 22 turnovers, many leading to easy Oldham County transition baskets. Still, even in the loss, the Mustangs had a bright spot: senior center Tyler Higdon was nearly unstoppable against the Colonels, scoring 26 points and grabbing 12 rebounds, both game highs.

 

North rebounded on Saturday in the Henry County Classic, racing out to 30-7 lead over Henry County, before settling for a 97-73 victory. Fourteen Mustangs played in the game, and eleven scored, led by Dallas Roberts’ 26 points. Two North subs reached double figures in the game; freshman guard Jack Scales – who has been seeing more and more playing time – hit 5 of 10 threes for 15 points, and sophomore “Rico” Carr-Cole had 12. All told, the North bench tallied 39 points in the game.

 

North doesn’t look like the same team that started the season. Coach David Levitch has woven some new faces into key roles in the rotation…the defenses look different without Justin Powell….and North doesn’t have that single, overwhelming star presence on the perimeter. But North has definitely worked its way back into contention, even if the Mustangs will still be the underdogs to get out of District 29.

 

Perhaps the biggest improvement lately has been in the bench play; over the last six games, Rico Carr-Cole, Scales, and Mitchell Cox are kicking in nearly 23 points per game off the bench, with Carr-Cole scoring in double figures in four of those six games.

 

Some big challenges await….North still has to play #15 South Oldham, #1 Ballard, and #9 Collins.

 

This week: 1/28/2020 at Waggener 1/31/2020 vs. #15 South Oldham

 

6 – Spencer County (11-7) Last week: #4 RPI: #45 .59838 Since Collins hammered Spencer County in Taylorsville on January 10th, 69-52, the Bears have been something of a shadow of the team that we saw earlier in the year.

 

I’ve been fortunate enough to see Spencer County five times already this year. The Bears play with heart, and they are a blue-collar team that – at their best – simply outworks the competition. Spencer is rugged, physical, and aggressive, and the Bears play with a chip on their shoulder.

 

On the other hand, Spencer is a relatively poor shooting squad – they’ve only shot better than 50% in one game this year, the very first game of the season – and they aren’t deep at all. The roster realistically goes only about 6 deep, and when one of the starters does go out with fouls or an injury, it creates a serious scoring hole.

 

Last week, the Bears went 1-2. The first game was a matchup against Christian Academy of Louisville, a game Spencer likely would win 8 times out of 10. But – coming off the Collins loss – Spencer appeared to have not yet regained their normal level of play, and the Bears went down in defeat, 78-73. Junior Sam Conley had 33 in the loss.

 

Spencer bounced back to edge the Woodford County Yellowjackets, 52-50, in their next game. In what was likely a preview of the first round of the 30th district, Spencer was able to take advantage of the absence of star Woodford center Hunter Penn – out with an injury suffered in the previous game – to claim the victory. Again, Conley led the team with 23 points.

 

On Saturday, the Bears wrapped up the week against then-#17 St. Xavier. In the first half, the Tigers could do no wrong. Their passing was impeccable, they nailed shot after shot, and they completely controlled the backboard.

 

Spencer trailed, 52-26.

 

To Spencer’s credit, the Bears battled back in the second half with perhaps the most impressive rally I've seen this season, eventually cutting the 26-point lead down to three points in the final three minutes of the game. But St. X regrouped and hung on to claim the game, 82-75.

 

For the eleventh straight game, Sam Conley led the Bears in scoring with 27 points.

 

Spencer will be favored in all three games this week, but at least two of the games will likely be good challenges for the Bears. It will be a big opportunity for Spencer County to right the ship.

 

This week: 1/27/2020 vs. Walton-Verona 1/28/2020 at Trimble County 1/31/2020 vs. Gallatin County

 

7 – Woodford County (12-9) Last week: #5 RPI: #59 .57839 The season has had very definite “chapters” this year for Woodford County, the newcomer to Region 8.

The first chapter was an ugly opening to the season; a 1-5 start that featured a big opening day win, and then five straight defeats, all against above-average competition.

 

The second chapter was a thirteen game stretch during which Woodford could do little wrong, and the Jackets won 11 of 13 as they quickly moved up the rankings.

 

Now a third chapter has begun. A chapter started by an injury to star center Hunter Penn, suffered in the come-from-behind win at Walton-Verona. Since Penn has been out, Woodford’s stock has plummeted. The Yellowjackets, who were the number one shooting team in Region 8, suddenly can’t shoot straight, and the result has been two consecutive losses.

 

Penn – the fourth-best shooter from the field in the 8th Region at 61.7% - always helped bring the Woodford shooting percentages up. Without him in the lineup, the Jackets shot just 43.8% from the floor in the loss to Spencer County (52-50) and a mere 26.9% on Saturday in the loss to South Oldham in the Henry County Classic (89-62).

 

J.D. Alexander came off the bench to play his most significant minutes of the season for Woodford, and he led the team in scoring in both losses, with 10 against Spencer and 11 against South, but for Woodford, a team that frequently had 3 or 4 players in double digits, it was significant to note that Alexander was the only Woodford County player in double digits in either game.

 

The rumor mill suggests that Penn will be back in about two weeks; if that’s true, that’s good news for coach Jaron Brown and the Yellowjacket fans. That would give him about 2 weeks to get back in shape before heading into the post-season. With Penn, the Jackets are a contender; without him, the team’s chances of getting out of the 30th district get significantly smaller.

 

Woodford has three solid opponents this week. The Jackets still have Henry Clay, Simon Kenton, and St. X to deal with later.

 

This week: 1/28/2020 East Jessamine (13-win team) 1/31/2020 at #9 Collins 2/1/2020 at Trinity

 

8 – Gallatin County (11-8) Last week: #8 RPI: #101 .53711 Like all the teams in this “second tier” of the rankings, Gallatin has some concerns. For one, the team is just hitting 44.4% from the floor overall, and a below-average 30.8% beyond the arc. For another, the team is hitting just 60.3% of its free throws. Finally, besides star guard Jarin Rassman, who’s averaging 18.3 ppg, the team can’t seem to find consistent scoring from the supporting cast.

 

All that said, Gallatin County is 11-8, has won 6 of its last 8 games, and reigns as this year’s 8th Region All-A tournament champions. The Wildcats are favored to win their fourth consecutive 31st district tournament next month.

 

Jon Jones, the longest-tenured coach in the 8th Region, who’s been at Gallatin County for over 20 seasons, outlined his team’s improvement – and their shortcomings:

 

“We are a better defensive team and a better rebounding team than we were in October. Our offense is still too reliant on Jarin Rassman, but we have players that have stepped up from time to time,” he said. “We need (Hayden) Dickerson, (Logan) Riddle, (Gage) Ashcraft to be more consistent offensively. They have the skill set. It just doesn’t show up every night.”

 

Gallatin split two games last week. Starting off the week with Trimble County, the Wildcats may have been looking forward to the state All-A Classic. Gallatin took care of business in the end, but outlasted Trimble County by just a 70-60 score. Rassman led the way with 22.

 

Later in the week, the Wildcats went to the State All-A Classic, representing the 8th Region. Gallatin fell behind Somerset – the champions of the 12th – 11 to 1 at the end of the first, but rallied to take the lead. Gallatin still held a slim advantage midway through the fourth, but eventually succumbed to Somerset, 46-37.

 

The jury’s still out on Gallatin County. They stay here at #8 this week.

 

This week: 1/28 at Henry County 1/31/2020 at Anderson County 2/1/2020 at Lloyd Memorial

 

9 – Grant County (11-7) Last week: #10 RPI: #88 .54743 We’re adopting a “wait-and-see” attitude, but the Braves may be starting to make their move. They move up one spot this week to number 9, and also move into the second-tier of region contenders.

At the beginning of the season, we pegged Grant as one of the possible contenders, but a lot hinged on some up-and-coming freshmen, who had to produce if Grant was to be a contender.

 

A 4-5 start, coupled with a close-but-no-cigar loss to South Oldham, and a stunning loss to Anderson County in which Grant County scored just 28 points, didn’t inspire early confidence.

But the Braves have won 7 of 9 since then, and they scored a huge district 32 and region 8 win last Friday when they shocked the Simon Kenton Pioneers, 74-70.

 

Grant County won two last week, slamming Calvary Christian, 87-50, before getting the SK victory. In the win over SK, Grant hit 50% from the floor, and five Braves scored in double figures, led by senior Luke Dawalt, who had 24 points and 12 rebounds.

 

The Simon Kenton win was huge for Grant County, who missed the 8th Region tournament last year. It not only put Grant County in the driver’s seat for the 32nd district #1 seed – the Braves get the number one seed with a win over Walton-Verona this week – it also provided Grant with the knowledge that they could knock off one of the “big boys.”

 

Coach Joe Utter: “The SK game was a huge win for us. It proves we can compete with the top teams in the region and gives us a chance to be the number one seed in the 32nd district.”

 

“Hopefully, it gives us momentum going into this week with four games,” he continued. “It’s a big confidence boost for us heading into the final stretch of the season and post-season.”

 

Key notes from the recent surge:

 

Over the past six games, Grant has had at least four players score in double figures in each game.

 

Over the last seven games, Grant has outrebounded six of their opponents and tied the seventh on the glass.

 

Grant has one of the region’s busiest schedules this week: 1/27/2020 at Owen County 1/28/2020 vs. Carroll County 1/31/2020 vs. Walton-Verona 2/1/2020 vs. Aiken (Cincinnati, OH)

 

The Third Tier – Of these four teams, probably at least one will make it to New Castle for the Region 8 Tournament.

 

10 – Anderson County (14-6) Last week: #9 RPI: #80 .55574 In two weeks, Anderson County has now dropped three spots in the ranking. They fall one spot this week to number 9, but more significantly, drop into the third tier of teams in the rankings.

 

The Bearcats, who started the year 14-2, have now lost four straight. The defense has continued to play well – with the exception of that North Oldham game last Tuesday – but the offense has wilted against some better competition. The Bearcats, averaging just 50.5 ppg, managed to average just 37 ppg in their last four contests, and never reached 50 points in that stretch.

 

The offensive numbers for the past four games have surely been hard for head coach Bryan Hyatt to watch:

 

Anderson County is averaging 37 ppg during the losing streak.

 

No Bearcat has scored over 12 points during the stretch.

 

The Bearcats scored a season-low 31 points against North Oldham last Tuesday, and only 36 points three nights later against Collins.

 

Anderson shot 45.5% from the floor against Collins – but less than 40% in the other three losses, including just 28.6% against North Oldham.

 

The Cats hit only 13 of 28 at the line in the four losses for just 46.4%.

 

Finally, Anderson averaged only 19 rebounds in the four losses, with a high of 21 against Woodford County.

 

Last week, Anderson opened the week with a stunning 74-31 loss to North Oldham. Even the Anderson defense struggled that night; no team had scored over 59 points against Anderson County all season. Hunter Rutherford scored 10 in the loss; he was the only player for Anderson in double figures.

 

On Friday, facing arch-rival Collins in a district seeding matchup, the Bearcats seemed to bounce back. Maybe it was the emotion of the rivalry; maybe the loss to North served as a wake-up call. Regardless, the Bearcats had a chance to hit a three to tie the game in the final ten seconds. Instead, they missed the shot, Collins rebounded, and the Titans hit a layup at the buzzer to give Collins a 41-36 victory. No Anderson players reached double figures; Tyler Rice led the way with 9 points.

 

Anderson doesn’t have a very forgiving schedule in their final seven games; to regain their momentum, Anderson County will have to get an upset or two. Among the remaining games on the schedule, Anderson will face the top-ranked team from Region 12 (Somerset), district rival Spencer County, #13-ranked Oldham County, and Lexington Christian.

 

This week: 1/31/2020 at Somerset

 

11 – Walton-Verona (9-10) Last week: #11 RPI: #171 .47288 Walton-Verona stays put at #11 this week after a week in which they won only 1 of 3 games, but played well in two of the contests.

 

Walton opened the week against Woodford County and the Bearcats built a 20+ point lead on some hot shooting, only to watch an equally hot shooting Yellowjacket team rally and pull out the late win. Brent Smithers continued his bid for All-Region honors by hitting 9 of 18 shots and 8 of 8 free throws for 32 points to lead W-V.

 

Walton-Verona battled back to get an 86-72 victory over Henry County next, hitting 54.7% from the field. Cameron Christy had 25 points and Smithers 22 to lead the way; the two also combined to collect 23 of Walton’s 26 rebounds – both finished with double-doubles.

 

The good shooting vibes went away late in the week, though, against Campbell County. Walton hit just 27.5% shots while scoring their fewest points of the season in a 77-34 loss.

 

The Bearcats have begun what will be a six-game road trip.

 

This week: 1/27/2020 – at Spencer County 1/29/2020 at St. Henry 1/31/2020 at Grant County

 

12 – Carroll County (9-10) Last Week: #12 RPI: #190 .44776 Carroll County went 2-2 last week, defeating Owen County (55-51) and Eminence (76-48), while losing to Ludlow (60-59) and East Jessamine (66-50).

 

Wyatt Supplee averaged 22 points in the four games – actually, well below his average – but had 31 against Owen County. He scored 28 of his team’s 50 points against East Jessamine.

Keishaun Mumphrey had two more double-doubles in the four games and now has ten double-doubles on the season.

 

This week: 1/28/2020 at Grant County 1/30/2020 vs. Henry County

 

13 – Henry County (8-10) Last week: #13 RPI: #198 .43531 Henry County took on two of the best shooting teams in the region last week, and lost to both, but the Wildcats managed to turn some heads, anyway.

 

In an 86-72 loss to Walton Verona, junior Trevor Hardin scored 30 points and grabbed 9 rebounds. The Cats, who’ve been looking for more supporting players to add points, had four players reach double figures, with Ethan Lankford scoring 15, Sam Royalty 11, and Ryan Phillips 10.

 

On Saturday, playing at home in the Henry County Classic, Henry County was blitzed early by a North Oldham onslaught that led to an early 30-7 North Oldham lead, but the Wildcats played toe-to-toe with the talented Mustangs from that point onward, ultimately losing, 97-75. Lankford (28 points) and Hardin (23 points) both eclipsed the 20 point mark in the loss, and – impressively – the Wildcats pounded the Mustangs on the backboard, out-rebounding North Oldham, 41-21.

 

This week:

 

1/28/2020 vs. Gallatin County 1/30/2020 at Carroll County 1/31/2020 at Williamstown

 

The Longshots…

 

14 – Williamstown (7-9) Last Week: #14 RPI: #207 .42244 The Demons went 1-1 last week, losing the game they were expected to lose and winning the game they were expected to win.

 

The Demons fell to Simon Kenton in a 32nd district seeding matchup, 78-36, but rebounded to defeat Burgin, 52-37.

 

Williamstown shot 53.6% against the Pioneers, but SK’s defense held Williamstown to just 28 field goal attempts in the game. Cole Kightlinger led the Demons with 13 points in the loss.

Against Burgin, three Demons reached double digits; Aiden Johnson led the way with 16 points.

 

This week: four home games; Williamstown will have the opportunity to make some noise this week:

 

1/28/2020 vs. Bracken County 1/30/2020 vs. Eminence 1/31/2020 vs. Henry County 2/1/2020 vs. Ludlow

 

15 – Owen County (4-13) Last week: #15 RPI: #249 .36051 Owen County battled, but came up just short in their only game last week, falling 55-51 against District 31 rival Carroll County.

 

Teagan Moore just missed out on his third consecutive 30 point game, scoring 28 points. Isaac Wash had 16 points and 10 rebounds.

 

Owen County has a busy week ahead; four games.

 

This week: 1/27/2020 vs. Grant County 1/28/2020 vs. Eminence 1/30/2020 at Ludlow 2/1/2020 Sayre (at Franklin County in the Gary Moore Classic 2:15 pm)

 

16 – Shelby County (4-15) Last Week: #16 RPI: #235 .38492 The Rockets failed to reach 50 points last week, and dropped two games.

 

Kaden Dugle and Trenton Burchfield both had 18 points against Franklin County, but the Rockets hit just 36.4% from the floor, and Franklin County claimed the win, 64-49.

 

Sayre then outlasted the Rockets three nights later, 56-42.

 

The Rockets have now lost 8 of 9 and 14 of their last 16 games. They have failed to reach 50 points in any of their last five games.

 

This week: 1/28/2020 vs. West Jessamine 1/31/2020 at #13 Oldham County

 

17 – Trimble County (4-15) Last week: #17 RPI: #233 .38599 Trimble County went 1-1 last week.

 

Trimble County nearly pulled off the upset over Gallatin County in their first game last week, losing by just 10 points at 70-60. Webster Reece hit 8 of 13 shots from the floor and 1 of 1 at the line to lead the Raiders with 17 points. Beau Turner had 15 and Dylan Jennings 10.

 

The Raiders then grabbed a “W”, knocking off Villa Madonna, 74-62. The Raiders overcame poor three-point shooting (2 of 14) and free throw shooting (just 12 of 24), and still won by double figures, led by Webster’s 21 points. Webster again shot well, hitting 8 of 11 shots and 4 of 6 free throws. Jennings had 14 and Tate Obgurn had 10.

 

This week: 1/28/2020 vs Spencer County 1/31/2020 at Newport

 

18 – Eminence (4-17) Last week: #18 RPI: #256 .33285 The Warriors were able to end a six-game skid with a 51-47 win to start last week over Burgin.

 

The Warriors, however, started a new losing streak by dropping their next two, falling to Shawnee, 61-25, and to Carroll County, 76-48.

 

The Warriors will be “Road Warriors” this week…

 

This week: 1/28/2020 at Owen County 1/30/2020 at Williamstown

 

Teams I’ve seen….

It’s been an awfully fun year to watch 8th Region boys basketball. I’ve been fortunate enough to see 13 of the 18 teams in the region. (for the record, the five I’ve missed are: Eminence, Williamstown, Owen County, Carroll County, and Gallatin County. It’s hard to believe I’ve missed out on Gallatin and Owen this year; I generally get to see them every season.) I’ve seen 8 of those teams at least twice, and four teams five times or more. In the remaining four weeks of the regular season, I’ll see the teams currently ranked 1-5 each at least once more: Oldham County, South Oldham, North Oldham, Collins, and Simon Kenton.

Edited January 28, 20206 yr by ColonelMike

You've been busy, nice lay out.

Colonel, I have one thing to add on the 1979 8th Region Tournament. Eventual championship Grant County came into the tournament with one loss, at home against Eminence.

And lo and behold, who should they draw in the first round? The Warriors.

The Braves survived what many consider, myself included, the greatest performance in the history of the tournament.

Lamont Sleets scored 47 points as Grant edged Eminence by a 60-59 score. I will never forget that night.

On a side note Gallatin coach Jon Jones was a member of the 79 Braves.

Incredible write up as usual.

Colonel, I have one thing to add on the 1979 8th Region Tournament. Eventual championship Grant County came into the tournament with one loss, at home against Eminence.

And lo and behold, who should they draw in the first round? The Warriors.

The Braves survived what many consider, myself included, the greatest performance in the history of the tournament.

Lamont Sleets scored 47 points as Grant edged Eminence by a 60-59 score. I will never forget that night.

On a side note Gallatin coach Jon Jones was a member of the 79 Braves.

 

You are correct on all counts. Great memories.

 

Today's kids don't know that - in the mid to late 1970s - Eminence was every bit the powerhouse.

 

Similarly, I remember the semi-final between Oldham County and Eminence in the 1977 8th Region Tournament. Mont Sleets was a freshman. Eminence had defeated Oldham twice by 20+ points that year; Oldham wound up winning that game by 2 in double OT. Still one of the greatest HS games I've ever seen. Troy McWilliams hit a 20 footer for Oldham at the buzzer to end the second OT to win it.

 

Eminence had Mont Sleets, "Dang"(?) Sleets, Gino Kirshner, Vance Blades...

 

Oldham had Chris Donlon, Troy McWilliams, Brian and Billy Shinault, Todd Stockdale.

 

Anybody else remember those names?

 

CM

Edited January 28, 20206 yr by ColonelMike

Sorry my write-up was late being published. I do my write-ups on Sunday; I wound up having to work. Didn't really get much done until after after work today.

This is a good year to be a fan of the 8th. A lot of teams that we should all be justifiably proud of. Only one will win the tournament, but I've enjoyed being in the stands cheering for all the teams carrying the banner of the 8th Region this year. It's easy to cheer for these teams.

Gino Kirchner went on to be the superintendent of highlands!

Gino Kirchner went on to be the superintendent of highlands!

 

Was wondering the other day whatever happened to some of those guys.

 

Gino was a KILLER long-ball shooter - back before three pointers. Good grief, he had range!

You are correct on all counts. Great memories.

 

Today's kids don't know that - in the mid to late 1970s - Eminence was every bit the powerhouse.

 

Similarly, I remember the semi-final between Oldham County and Eminence in the 1977 8th Region Tournament. Mont Sleets was a freshman. Eminence had defeated Oldham twice by 20+ points that year; Oldham wound up winning that game by 2 in double OT. Still one of the greatest HS games I've ever seen. Troy McWilliams hit a 20 footer for Oldham at the buzzer to end the second OT to win it.

 

Eminence had Mont Sleets, "Dang"(?) Sleets, Gino Kirshner, Vance Blades...

 

Oldham had Chris Donlon, Troy McWilliams, Brian and Billy Shinault, Todd Stockdale.

 

Anybody else remember those names?

 

CM

 

I was a senior at Gallatin. Oldham built a big lead against us in the District semifinal at Carroll. We made a furious 4th quarter comeback and came up a little short.

And yes, I was at the 1977 8th Region. You’re right. One of the best 8th Region Tournament games I have ever seen.

Sleets was the only player I remember that you had to pick up as soon as he stepped off the bus. That dude had some kind of range. Not only was Jon Jones on the Grant County team in 79, so was Steve Simpson.

Oldham County still looking good. Collins lost, but fared very, very well against Male. Henry stunned Gallatin, some interesting games so far this week, still have that big South Oldham vs. North Oldham tilt in Goshen tomorrow night. SK at #3 CovCath tomorrow as well. Henry at Carroll tonight should be a good one. Anderson vs. Somerset tomorrow.

Oldham County still looking good. Collins lost, but fared very, very well against Male. Henry stunned Gallatin, some interesting games so far this week, still have that big South Oldham vs. North Oldham tilt in Goshen tomorrow night. SK at #3 CovCath tomorrow as well. Henry at Carroll tonight should be a good one. Anderson vs. Somerset tomorrow.

 

I"m not for sure Henry stunned Gallatin, Gallatin missing Dickerson played a factor but with that said Henry is getting better every game. Gallatin did a great job on Hardin, holding him to 11 points.

You are correct on all counts. Great memories.

 

Today's kids don't know that - in the mid to late 1970s - Eminence was every bit the powerhouse.

 

Similarly, I remember the semi-final between Oldham County and Eminence in the 1977 8th Region Tournament. Mont Sleets was a freshman. Eminence had defeated Oldham twice by 20+ points that year; Oldham wound up winning that game by 2 in double OT. Still one of the greatest HS games I've ever seen. Troy McWilliams hit a 20 footer for Oldham at the buzzer to end the second OT to win it.

 

Eminence had Mont Sleets, "Dang"(?) Sleets, Gino Kirshner, Vance Blades...

 

Oldham had Chris Donlon, Troy McWilliams, Brian and Billy Shinault, Todd Stockdale.

 

Anybody else remember those names?

 

CM

 

I'm assuming this is the same Gene Kirchner that I played for at SK?

I'm assuming this is the same Gene Kirchner that I played for at SK?

 

Not sure. I lost track of Gino after he graduated from Eminence. Southseas says he went on (eventually) to be superintendent at Highlands. I don't know about either...

 

Good grief, that kid could shoot. (not a kid anymore, I guess....he should be about 60 or 61...LOL)