BluegrassPreps.com 1st Region Tournament Preview

Remember all those predictions I made for the district tournaments last week?  I was just messing with you all.  There was mayhem in the 1st Region as all of the top seeds lost, and all of the 2nd seeds won.  I guess the most surprising was Tilghman's upset over McCracken to stop the Mustangs' 51-game 1st Region winning streak, and also snap the 14-game winning streak over the Tornado.  Here are my preview of the quarterfinal games Monday and Tuesday:

Calloway County vs Mayfield - Monday at 6.  The Lakers just keep getting better, and I think they are a favorite in this game.  But the Cardinals have a lot of talent too, and I think this could be a tight one.

Fulton County vs McCracken County - Monday at 7:30.  It's a little weird to say that McCracken was the district runner-up and Fulton County was their district champion.  The Pilots have been hot as of late, but I think that the Mustangs should win this one.

Graves County vs Murray - Tuesday at 6.  I think this game is the most interesting quarterfinal to me.  One tidbit to this game is that Mason Grant was one of the top scorers and rebounders for Graves, and then transferred to Murray in January.  I have a feeling Coach Frick really wants this one, but I simply think that the Tigers have too much firepower.  I think it could be close, but I feel like Murray will come out on top here.

Paducah Tilghman vs Carlisle County - Tuesday at 7:30.  If Tilghman can hold Hayden to under 70 I think they will be good.  Ha!  It was the first game of the year that Hayden scored 70 at home to knock off the Tornado.  A lot has happened since then, and Big Blue was missing 2-3 of their key guys.  I think Tilghman should win the rematch.

Here are my rankings of these eight teams with a bit of commentary:

1. McCracken County - I don't know what the status of Ian Hart is - he had a boot on his foot in the district finals.  Hart is one of their top scorers and rebounders and having him for the regional tourney would be a huge plus.  Region 1 Player of the Year Brant Brower had a bad game against Tilghman with some foul trouble, and I honestly don't expect that to happen again in Regionals.

2. (tie) Murray - I had a lot of trouble deciding between Murray and Tilghman as the second favorite so I just called it a tie.  Murray was able to beat Tilghman on the road earlier this season, but PT was without Jayvion Powell, and he is a difference maker.  But I think that Murray is totally healthy now (English is back) and they have had an excellent season.  A Tigers regional title would not be a surprise to me at all.

2. (tie) Paducah Tilghman - I mentioned the Hart injury above for McCracken, but Tilghman is also without one of their key players - Jequan Warren.  He is an exceptional defender, and I do not know if he will be available this week for the Tornado or not.  The 1-2 scoring punch of Powell and Shaw is very hard to defend.  If the Tornado can cause havoc on defense this week then they have a possibility of cutting the nets down in Murray.

4. Calloway County - This is as hot of a team as any in the 1st Region.  They shoot the three early and often, and if their shots are falling then they can beat anybody in this region.  This is a sleeper pick to win it for sure.

 5. Graves County - This is Coach Frick's last run, and don't ever count out a team with scorer Drew Thompson - he can fill it up!

6. Mayfield - If they can guard the 3-ball then they have a shot at upsetting the Lakers.

7.  Fulton County - Congrats on the 1st District championship!  

8.  Carlisle County - Maybe Garrett Hayden simply likes to play against Tilghman.  They may need to put two defenders on him if he gets hot.