BluegrassPreps.com 12th Region Boys Basketball Regional Tournament Preview

The regional tournament is finally here. This week features the four first round games, all played at Pulaski County. Let’s go game by game, breakdown how these teams got there and what the matchups look like. Wednesday features two games in which the opponents have not faced each other. Thursday gives us two rematches and includes some hefty star power. 

Wednesday, March 2^nd at 6:30 PM 

McCreary Central versus Mercer County 

McCreary comes in as the 48^th District Champion and they have lost only two games since their participation in the White, Greer & Maggard Holiday Classic at Lexington Catholic. Their championship win over Wayne County was actually a reversal of their most recent defeat. The Raiders are led in scoring by Kyle Stephens who averages 19.6 points per game. He and Trent Conatser are the top two rebounders and the primary interior threats, though both have shown some ability offensively on the perimeter as well. Seniors Trey Davis and Noah Loudermilk power the backcourt and are both averaging over 12 points per game.  

Mercer County has the weakest resume on paper of any team in the regional tournament. They come in as the runner-up of the 46^th district, beating East Jessamine in the district semifinals but losing to West Jessamine in the championship. Seth Caton is the only Titan who averages over 10 ponts per game. Trevor Ellis and Evan Hart do most of the rebounding and Ellis may be one of the more promising freshmen in the region. 

McCreary should win this game but Mercer has certainly improved throughout the year and has worked to get themselves to this position. Do not expect them to go quietly.  

Wednesday, March 2^nd at 8:15 PM 

Lincoln County versus Rockcastle County 

Look, everyone agrees Pulaski County had the best year in the region. What they accomplished was clearly special. However, Lincoln has clearly become at least the second best team in the region and I am not convinced they aren’t the best. They come in as the champs of the 45^th after beating Garrard County and Boyle County. They are clearly the favorite in this first round matchup and a contender for the regional title. They have four players that deserve discussion for any end of year list in the region in Colton Ralston, Jaxon Smith, Tramane Alcorn and Evan Smith. The depth after those four, however, is questionable and might be their greatest weakness. If Alcorn or Jaxon Smith get in foul trouble, they are going to have a huge hole to fill defensively.  

Which leads us to Rockcastle County. The Rockets have quietly had one of the best seasons in the region and currently stand at 20 wins. They come in as the runners-up of the 47^th after dispatching Somerset and narrowly falling to the mighty Pulaski Maroons in the championship game. They are led by the fantastic Daniel Mullins who averages nearly 19 points per game and can light it up from beyond the arc. But who may drive the Patriots crazy are Matthew Chasteen and Jake Sanders. The interior threats both average nearly 12 points per game and right around 6 rebounds per game. 

This game will come down to three questions for me. First, can Lincoln County get all four of their top scorers to be factors in the scoring column? Second, can Lincoln County contain both Chasteen and Sanders inside? And finally, will the Rockets be able to push the tempo, get Mullins looks in transition and wear out the Patriots? 

Thursday, March 3^rd at 6:30 PM 

Pulaski County versus Wayne County 

The Maroons have lost to just one team in the 12^th region and that was Boyle County in overtime back on the 17^th of February. They come into the tournament as district champs after defeating Casey County and Rockcastle County. They have defeated every team participating in this tournament except Boyle County.  

The Cardinals earned the top seed in the district tournament behind the dynamic duo of Kendall Phillips and Mason Burchett, but could not take home the title as they fell to the red hot Raiders of McCreary Central. The Cardinals are not deep and go as far as Phillips and Burchett take them. 

This game is a rematch of a December 14 contest at Pulaski County where the Maroons won 76 to 57. Gavin Stevens had 19, Zach Travis had 18 (with 12 coming from 3 pointers), and Caleb Sloan had 16. Pulaski went 8 of 23 from beyond the arc. They definitely are favored to repeat that win on their home floor. However, this was a game where Wayne’s Phillips and Burchett combined for 34. The Cardinals will probably need at least a repeat of that total to have a chance.  

Thursday, March 3^rd at 8:15 PM 

West Jessamine versus Boyle County 

West Jessamine pulls the short straw and gets to play reigning champ Boyle County in the first round. The Colts won the 46^th district by defeating Burgin and Mercer County. Hogan Price dropped 23 points in the title game. Price is part of the quartet of Daniel Waters, Drew Marshall and Brett Bush that currently lead this Colts team in the absence of Gavin Salva. Waters leads all Colt scorers with an average close to 17 points per game.  

Boyle is the best district runner-up in the region and they have the best player in the tournament in Luke Imfeld. He is averaging upwards of 21 points per game, accounting for a third of all Rebel points this year. But is has been shown he can only do so much as one player. Kason Myers, William Carr, Hagan Webb, and Jakei Tarter are all capable of stepping up and contributing.  

Boyle defeated West on February 1^st with a score of 60 to 51. Marshall had 22 for the Colts and Waters had 10 but Price and Bush were limited to a combined 6 points. West will need a faster pace and significant contributions from each of their big four to win this one.  Boyle wants this game to remain below the sixties with Imfeld being able to get close to 20 and at least two of their supporting four having decent nights. This game may end up going to the Rebels but West should make it very interesting.