11th Region Week 5 Review

 

Regional contenders showed last week they can slay some beasts in a tournament setting, boding well for postseason play. Madison Central surprised state No. 1 Warren Central. Lexington Catholic knocked off No. 10 Lyon County. Frederick Douglass defeated Harlan, which rests just outside the Associated Press top 10. State-ranked Great Crossing plus Lexington Catholic, Lexington Christian, Henry Clay and Madison Central remained unbeaten against regional competition. Individually, Great Crossings' Vince Dawson, Lexington Catholic's Reece Potter, Armelo Boone from Frederick Douglass, Madison Southern's Jay Rose and Nick Spalding from Paul Laurence Dunbar all had some big games. Rankings-wise, no major changes in the top 10, with a pretty strong top seven and an elite top two. Here ya go.

 

Regional rankings:

 

1. Great Crossing (12-2): The Warhawks went 3-0 at the Smoky Mountain Winter Classic in Gatlinburg. Tenn., with victories against three teams from different states. They took down Maryland's South River, 66-40; smashed Kentucky counterpart Pikeville, 74-57; and outlasted Alabama's Spain Park, 60-53. They have now won 11 of their last 12 games with the only loss in that span coming against Warren Central (they lost to Covington Catholic by five in the second game of the season). Vince Dawson led the team in scoring every game. He had 17 points and 10 rebounds against South River. He dropped in 26 points against Pikeville and scored 17 vs. Spain Park. Malachi Moreno added 15 points and eight rebounds vs. Spain Park and averaged 10 points and 10 rebounds per game for the week. Dawson is averaging a team-best 18.4 ppg on the season. Moreno is next at 15.3 ppg with a team-high 10.7 rebounds.

 

2. Lexington Catholic (13-1): The Knights dominated against quality competition at their own White, Greer & Maggard Holiday Classic, going 4-0 with three different leading scorers. They crushed a 20-win team from a year ago in Christian Academy-Louisville, 77-43; handled 11-3 Bowling Green, 61-44; lashed 12-4 Lyon County, 73-53; and toppled 11-5 North Oldham, 55-47. Hudson Sparks scored a team-high 17 points against CAL. Reece Potter recorded a double-double with 18 points and 13 rebounds against Bowling Green. Tyler Doyle led with 19 points versus Lyon County and Potter put up another double-double of 11 points and 13 rebounds. Potter had a team-best 16 points against North Oldham. Potter leads the team with 19.2 ppg and 9.3 rebounds.

 

3. Henry Clay (7-5): The defending regional champion Blue Devils went 1-2 at the Ashland Invitational Tournament with a win over The Carmel School (VA) and losses to Simon Kenton and Lincoln County. They are 3-5 after the 4-0 start. However, Henry Clay's five losses have come against teams with a combined record of 47-14 (also 9-3 Eastern, 10-2 Harrison County and unbeaten McCracken County). They have beaten 7-4 Conner, 11-3 Highlands and 10-4 Butler.

 

4. Frederick Douglass (9-2): The Broncos went 3-0 at a tournament for the second successive week, this time going unbeaten at Bath County's Dan Swartz Classic with wins against Lewis County, Harlan and Paris. They have won six games in a row but I keep thinking that Henry Clay beat them three times last season, including in the 11th Region tournament final, so they are still behind Henry Clay another week. With defenses increasingly focusing on leading scorer Kai Simpson, second-leading scorer Armelo Boone led the team in scoring every game, tallying 12, 18 and 23 points in that order. Simpson had a week-high 19 versus Paris. Only losses are to regional rankings leaders Great Crossing, ranked No. 4 in the state, and Lexington Catholic.

 

5. Madison Central (5-6): The Indians went 1-2 against brutal competition at Lexington Catholic's White, Greer & Maggard Holiday Classic with a shocking 60-43 win in the opener against previously unbeaten and state No. 1 Warren Central, a six-point loss to eighth-ranked Mason County and a three-point loss to 11-3 Bowling Green. They've also beaten Madison Southern. Jaylen Davis led four players in double figures with 22 points in the win.

 

6. Madison Southern (8-5): The Eagles finished 2-1 against Florida teams at the Mainland Christmas Shootout in Daytona Beach, Fla. They beat Ridge Community and Vero Beach but lost to Deerfield Beach. Jay Rose scored 29 points against Ridge and 32 against Vero Beach. They have beaten 10-3 South Laurel and handed 13-1 Pulaski County its only loss.

 

7. Lexington Christian (10-2): The Eagles finished 3-0 at the Carolina Invitational in Charleston, S.C, with victories against Northview Academy (TN), Northwood Academy (SC) and Wildwood (FL), extending their winning streak to four. All that's keeping them from being unbeaten is a quality two-point loss to 13-1 Grant County and a perplexing seven-point loss to 5-8 West Jessamine. However, they have just two victories against Kentucky teams with winning records (Garrard County and Lincoln County). They did beat Paul Laurence Dunbar by two in overtime on the road.

 

8. Paul Laurence Dunbar (5-6): Went 2-1 at the Lowcountry Roundball Classic in North Charleston , S.C. Defeated Stall (SC) and Forsyth Country Day (NC) but lost to Goose Creek (SC). Nick Spalding erupted for 43 points against Stall and scored 21 versus Forsyth Country Day. The Bulldogs have just one win against a regional foe and that came against Brian Station in the season opener.

 

9. Bryan Station (4-9): The Defenders finished 0-3 at the Kelleher Law Holiday Hoopfest in Naples, Fla, losing to Florida schools Naples Golden Gate, Lake City Columbia and Gainesville. They have just two regional wins, against Western Hills and Lafayette.

 

10. Western Hills (5-8): The Wolverines went 2-1 at the Henry County Invitational Tournament with victories against Bullitt East and Frankfort and a loss to Beth Haven. Western Hills has beaten Sayre and Frankfort.

 

11. Sayre (8-4): The Spartans went 2-1 at the Bill Perkins Holiday Classic at Williamsburg, losing to Lou. Holy Cross in the opener but bouncing back with wins against Tennessee schools Knoxville Grace Christian Academy and Powell First Baptist Academy. Ian Reesor had a double-double of 15 points and 11 rebounds vs. First Baptist. Sayre has few high-quality wins. Their only regional victory came against Tates Creek the previous week.

 

12. Frankfort (7-4): The Panthers went 1-2 at the Henry County Invitational Tournament, beating Shelby County but losing to Grant County and Western Hills. Their three regional wins have come against Lafayette, Model and Franklin Christian.

 

13. Tates Creek (4-6): Lost to Florida foe Downey Christian in the opener of the Tampa Bay Christmas Invitational in Wesley Chapel, Fla. Has beaten Lafayette and Franklin County.

 

14. Scott County (6-8): The Cardinals went 2-1 at the King of the Smokies Tournament in Pigeon Forge, Tenn. They beat Elizabethtown and Jefferson County (TN) and lost to Bearden (TN). Lone regional win came against Lafayette.

 

15. Lafayette (5-10): The Generals were 1-2 at the Ellis Trucking Christmas Classic with a win over host Mercer County and losses to Danville and Washington County. Lafayette's only regional win in seven games came against Franklin County.

 

16. Franklin County (7-4): The Flyers went 2-1 at the Campbellsville High School Holiday Classic, beating John Hardin and Southern but losing to Oldham County. Their only regional win in four games came against Frankfort Christian.

 

17. Model (5-6): The Patriots have been idle since Dec. 22. They have played just one regional opponent, a loss to Frankfort. Their leading scorer is Cale Vicars (14.2 ppg).

 

18. Berea (5-9): The Pirates have won three of five, but they have yet to face a regional opponent. They went 1-2 last week at the Dan Swartz Classic, grabbing a win against Elliott County but losing to host Bath County and Bishop Brossart.

 

19. Frankfort Christian (4-9): The Royals are on a four-game losing streak after an 0-3 week with losses to Villa Madonna, Francis Parker and Cornerstone Christian at the Ray Zellar Christmas Classic at Whitefield Academy. They do not have a regional win in two games.

My top three would be in this order.

Lex Cath

G Crossing

Mad Central

6 hours ago, 4 Quarters said:

My top three would be in this order.

Lex Cath

G Crossing

Mad Central

Totally plausible. We shall see...

Great Crossing plays Mad Central Jan. 13.

LexCath and Great Crossing play Jan. 28 at the Gary Moore Classic at Franklin County.

LexCath plays at Mad Central Feb. 7.

Get your tickets.

How much of an impact does Mad. Central PG stepping away from team does that have on them?  Obviously, a strange situation and I had seen his numbers were very solid...

2 hours ago, LethalPG said:

How much of an impact does Mad. Central PG stepping away from team does that have on them?  Obviously, a strange situation and I had seen his numbers were very solid...

Explain, please!

19 hours ago, 4 Quarters said:

Explain, please!

I won't name the kid, but he went on Social Media with a "Dear Basketball" letter essentially retiring from the game.  He was Central's starting PG.  Obviously, didn't affect the Indians too much with them blasting Dunbar last night...

1 hour ago, LethalPG said:

I won't name the kid, but he went on Social Media with a "Dear Basketball" letter essentially retiring from the game.  He was Central's starting PG.  Obviously, didn't affect the Indians too much with them blasting Dunbar last night...

I guess you're speaking of Hagan Harrison.  Looks like according to the stats he played last night, but his name has been removed from the roster today.  He was listed on the roster yesterday.  If he is truly gone that is a huge blow to Madison Central.  Just can't believe what he went thru to be eligible to play this year and then quit.

36 minutes ago, 4 Quarters said:

I guess you're speaking of Hagan Harrison.  Looks like according to the stats he played last night, but his name has been removed from the roster today.  He was listed on the roster yesterday.  If he is truly gone that is a huge blow to Madison Central.  Just can't believe what he went thru to be eligible to play this year and then quit.

Yeah, I'm unsure of the rules about posting stuff from social media but the message the player sent out clearly sounded like he was "hanging it up" for good.  But, as you know kids can change their minds like the weather.

47 minutes ago, 4 Quarters said:

I guess you're speaking of Hagan Harrison.  Looks like according to the stats he played last night, but his name has been removed from the roster today.  He was listed on the roster yesterday.  If he is truly gone that is a huge blow to Madison Central.  Just can't believe what he went thru to be eligible to play this year and then quit.

Yep, he's out, at least for now anyway.

HIGH SCHOOL BOYS HOOPS: Indians top Dunbar; Eagles win on road; Model falls | Sports | richmondregister.com

The Indians (6-6) had only one opportunity to work out together - without their starting point guard - prior to a match-up with long-time 11th Region rival Paul Laurence Dunbar.

And they made the most of it.

"Practice (on Monday) was great," Madison Central coach Allen Feldhaus Jr., said. "It was probably one of the best we've had all year."

The Indians followed up that great practice with a great all-around performance.

Jaylen Davis had 27 points, eight rebounds and four rebounds as Central rolled to a 74-43 win over Dunbar on Tuesday in Richmond. Robby Todd finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds as the Indians shot 56.5 percent from the field and had 17 assists.

It was Central's first game since point guard Hagan Harrison announced he had stepped away from the team - and the game.

The senior had averaged 17.6 points and 5.0 rebounds a game so far this season.

 

 

I wonder what happened.

 

58 minutes ago, Basketball Jones said:

Yep, he's out, at least for now anyway.

HIGH SCHOOL BOYS HOOPS: Indians top Dunbar; Eagles win on road; Model falls | Sports | richmondregister.com

The Indians (6-6) had only one opportunity to work out together - without their starting point guard - prior to a match-up with long-time 11th Region rival Paul Laurence Dunbar.

And they made the most of it.

"Practice (on Monday) was great," Madison Central coach Allen Feldhaus Jr., said. "It was probably one of the best we've had all year."

The Indians followed up that great practice with a great all-around performance.

Jaylen Davis had 27 points, eight rebounds and four rebounds as Central rolled to a 74-43 win over Dunbar on Tuesday in Richmond. Robby Todd finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds as the Indians shot 56.5 percent from the field and had 17 assists.

It was Central's first game since point guard Hagan Harrison announced he had stepped away from the team - and the game.

The senior had averaged 17.6 points and 5.0 rebounds a game so far this season.

 

 

I wonder what happened.

 

Yeah, me also.  A kid transfers, plays jv his sit out year, then up and quits.  Will he try to resurface at another school?

Harrison posted on social media which has been shared elsewhere, so I'll post a screenshot.

Isn't the first time a player has walked away from the game; won't be the last. I'm old enough to remember Jim Deering not coming back for his senior year at Cov Cath for '75/'76. Jimmy simply developed interests that laid in other areas. 

I'll never know what goes on behind closed doors in people's lives, much less what goes on their heads. I hope this young man finds some inner peace. If he comes back to the game, I'll cheer for him wherever he lands. 

Dang. That's pretty sad stuff. He's being way too hard on himself. I see this letter as a coping mechanism. He's bummed out. There have been many clinical studies suggesting that giving thanks makes us happier because gratitude helps people feel positive emotions, relish good experiences and deal with adversity. The medical community at large believes that being mindful of one's blessings rewires neural passageways and generates hope. He's writing this letter to help give himself a boost, even if he doesn't know it. I assume he comes back after some reflection. Hopefully, coach Feldhaus has kept the door open. To my knowledge, he hasn't written a Dear Football letter. He was the team's starting quarterback and second-leading rusher in the fall. Just judging the comparison, though, he seems to have a better chance playing in college as a basketball player than a football player. And I bet he's going to figure that out pretty soon. I wish him luck.

Edited January 11, 20233 yr by theguru