Week 5 Review & Rankings

               Goodbye 2021 and hello 2022! The Holiday tournaments are over, and we are now approaching District play and the 10^th Region ALL A Classic. Last week I said I was getting a better feel of all the teams, and I thought I was… until this week. Some results this week were very surprising, and I am sure we will have even more shocking results as we dive into district play soon. Let’s get into the rankings for Week 5.

All A Classic below

Team Rankings (Record, change in ranking)

1.      George Rogers Clark (11-1, -)

2.      Mason County (10-3, -)

3.      Campbell County (6-6, -)

4.      Harrison County (7-4, +1)

5.      Bracken County (9-5, -1)

6.      Augusta (7-7, -)

7.      Bishop Brossart (6-8, +1)

8.      Calvary Christian (8-4, +3)

9.      Montgomery County (4-7, -)

10.   Scott (1-11, -3)

11.   Robertson County (6-4, -)

12.   Bourbon County (2-7, -)

13.   Paris (3-7, -1)

14.   Nicholas County (4-8, +2)

15.   Pendleton County (2-10, -1)

16.   St. Patrick (2-9, -)

 

Weekly Commentary

               We will start with the top and work our way down. Let me introduce you to George Rogers Clark, GRC, WINcity, whatever you call them, barring any injuries they are the # 1 team in the region the rest of the year. They knocked off 3 top twenty teams this weekend, including the undisputed preseason # 1 ranked team in Ballard. Personally, I believe they should be number 1 in the state after the big win this weekend. You might not think they are the favorite to win the whole thing, but they are a top 3 team in the state.

 Mason County, still the clear number 2, went 2 and 1 this weekend with a tough loss to a solid Collins team. Nate Mitchell appears to be back in the full swing of things, after starting the year off injured, and their third leading scoring in KG Walton has been a pleasant surprise. Only if we could get a fun #1 and #2 matchup between the Mason County Royals and the George Rogers Clark Cardinals… I am guessing we will get to see this matchup in the postseason and if the Mason County Royals step up, they will be competitive against this dominate Clark County team.

 The Campbell County Camels have turned the corner. It was a tough start to the season, but they survived. Now almost midway through the year the Camels will face a few of the top regional opponents in the next couple of weeks. First, they get #5 Bracken County, followed with #2 Mason County, then a matchup against ninth region foe Lloyd Memorial will be followed by a game against #4 Harrison County. In two weeks, we should know about where the Camels stand compared to other 10^th Region Teams. They’re led by the two headed monster of Des Davie & Aydan Hamilton, which are complimented well by plenty of solid guard play from others on the team.

Getting the bump to the #4 Spot is Harrison County. Turns out they played 3 games this week over in the Henry County Invitational, and they won all three. They bring plenty of size and strength to the table as they are led by the do-it-all guard Kaydon Custard. Harrison county plays more in the half court and really grinds out possessions on both ends of the floor. They’re banking on rebounding, dribble drive, and bully ball to win games. And so far, its working pretty good for the Thorobreds.

The Bracken County Polar Bears had another big week this week but still find themselves slipping one spot in the rankings. This team will have big test on Tuesday night as they host #3 Campbell County. This is the game that puts Bracken in the top 3. Let’s be honest… most of us had them a little bit underrated coming into the season but we knew they could come out and beat some good teams when their guards played well. So far this season they have picked up a big win against rival Augusta, but outside of that game I just don’t see another great win… but this week they get a chance! A chance to prove they are a top 3 team in this region. Will they?

Augusta lost all three games this week and still remains in the 6 spot. It does appear they were dealing with some injuries this week as they were without the big man Riley Mastin for the weekend and were without Chase Archibald for one game who has been a key role player for the Panthers. Along with the injuries, Augusta played some stiff competition this weekend and to be frank, none of the teams below them have proved they deserve the 6^th spot in the Region. Augusta will face regional opponent Pendleton on Tuesday and then turn their focus to the All-A tournament as they will have to play the favorite Bracken County in game 1. You have to think if Riley Mastin continues to be out that this will be a tough matchup for the Panthers, but if they can beat Bracken, they can win it all. Augusta has some big things to prove this week as they are the 6^th team in the rankings, but they seem to be slowly fading further and further into the crowd of teams from the 7-12 range in the region.

As you can see, we had plenty of shake up for the teams in the middle of the pack, and that will continue throughout the season. The most disappointing team this past week is clearly Scott High as they took a brutal one-point loss to Calvary Christian. A 36-37 score line tells me the Eagles are struggling to score the ball. They have had a brutal schedule and I do believe Scott High is much better than their ranking or their record, but we have been giving them too much credit by keeping them around the 6-7 range in the rankings. Their going to have to prove it the rest of the year if they want to jump up into the teams that could contend for the region because so far, they haven’t proven a thing. Other than Scott High having a disappointing week I will say that the best surprise of the week was probably the three big wins Nicholas County put up. Many have written them off after a rough start, but I do think it is now possible for them to crack the top 12 if they can keep it up.

 

 

10^th Region ALL A Classic

               The All A is almost here, and boy am I excited for it!  The All A is a fantastic opportunity for smaller schools to show off their talent on the state level and this Saturday the 8 All A Teams in the region will all compete for the chance to punch their ticket to Alumni Coliseum (or wherever the tournament is this year). We kick it off with a Friday Night game that should be a heck of a matchup as #11 Robertson County will take on #9 Calvary Christian. It’s the All-A, and I am not going to pick against the best player in the Tournament in Justin Becker, I may be way off. Neither of these teams have really faced tough competition for most of the year, and I think the early inexperience we saw from the supporting cast of the Black Devils against the likes of Augusta may not be great, but I think it will be good enough against a Calvary Christian team who we really haven’t seen tested much either. The early morning game on Saturday features #16 St. Patrick vs #13 Paris, this game was just recently played, and I think we see a similar result as Paris should win by double digits. The next game looked like an easy pick just one week ago as they #14 Nicholas County Blue Jackets face #7 Bishop Brossart Mustangs. Bishop Brossart has struggled to score at times this year, but I am still going to pick them to beat Nicholas who will be riding a four-game win streak into the tournament if they can beat St. Patrick on Monday. The final game on Saturday should be the most intriguing as well. #6 Augusta Panthers will take on #5 Bracken County Polar Bears. A Rivalry game against who many think are the top two teams in the All-A. If Riley Mastin is out, I find it tough to pick the Panthers in this one. #5 Bracken County advances and takes on #7 Bishop Brossart. For the semifinal games I am going to pick #5 Bracken County and #12 Robertson County to advance. And if that is the matchup then I am going to roll with Bracken to win it all this year. There really are plenty of teams that could win it this year, but I think whoever comes out of the bottom of the bracket will win it all whether it is Bracken, Augusta, or Bishop Brossart.

 

Top Games & Predictions

               So far this season if my math is correct, I am 20-7 on my picks this season when it comes to picking the winner. I will start keeping track of my record from now on. My picks for this week are below, thank you all for reading and have a great week.   

 

Tuesday Jan 4^th

               #3 Campbell County vs #5 Bracken County, Campbell by 12

               #12 Bourbon County vs Scott County, Scott County by 12

               #15 Pendleton County vs #6 Augusta, Augusta by 16       

Thursday Jan 6^th

               #2 Mason County vs #12 Bourbon County, Mason by 18

               #5 Bracken County vs #10 Scott High, Bracken by 8

               #10 Montgomery County vs #13 Paris, Montgomery by 16

Friday Jan 7^th

               #9 Calvary Christian vs #11 Robertson County, Robertson by 5

Saturday Jan 8^th

                              #1 GRC vs Dunbar, GRC by 15

               #5 Bracken County vs #6 Augusta, Bracken by 3

                              #7 Bishop Brossart vs #14 Nicholas County, Bishop Brossart by 12

                              #16 St. Patrick vs #13 Paris, Paris by 20

 

 

 

 

I can assure you Scott is ready, 

for Baseball to start.  

5 hours ago, Brcatz said:

I can assure you Scott is ready, 

for Baseball to start.  

Too many athletes on that team - I am sure they will get it figured out in time.

@Instride   I hope your right but I’m hearing otherwise as the team has given up on the coaches and a few players are on the verge of quitting and moving on to other interests.