11th Region Week 7 Review

 

A pretty solid top eight is taking shape in the region, which is paced by two of the best teams in Kentucky. Part of me has wanted to anoint Lexington Catholic as a new No. 1, and Frederick Douglass probably deserves more love than I'm giving. Even so, there are no changes to the top four and the bottom six in the rankings. Movement occurs in between. The highlights: Frederick Douglass and Madison Southern are now tied for fifth, Sayre moves into the top 10 up to eighth, and Scott County and Western Hills are also in the top 10. Among individuals, Reece Potter, who is verbally committed to Miami University, had a nice week for Lexington Catholic and Saxton Howard excelled for Lexington Christian. Madison Central continues to get solid performances from several players after losing a key member of the team. Frederick Douglas also is benefitting from the efforts of several quality players.

 

Regional Rankings:

 

1. Great Crossing (15-3): The Warhawks played once and beat Madison Central, 64-53, at home. Vince Dawson led the way with 18 points. Malachi Moreno had a team-best 13 rebounds. They have won 14 of their last 16 games. Their losses came against state powers Covington Catholic, Warren Central and George Rogers Clark. They have a win against George Rogers Clark and have also beaten Ashland Blazer and Lyon County. They are 6-0 against the region and 3-0 versus the 41st District. The Knights probably deserve the top spot but Great Crossing is here because I think Great Crossing can beat Lexington Catholic head-to-head. If LexCath proves me wrong and beats Great Crossing later this month while not losing to anybody, LexCath goes straight to No. 1.

 

2. Lexington Catholic (19-1): The Knights played five games in seven days and went 4-1 with the loss coming in the fifth game against Mason County, 40-39, at the Kentucky 2A Championship. They ran their winning streak to 19 straight with wins against Bourbon County, Harrison County, Franklin-Simpson and Calloway County. Reece Potter had 22 points and nine rebounds against Bourbon County. Potter and John Reinhart scored 17 each against Harrison County. Potter scored 18 and Hudson Sparks had 17 vs. Franklin Simpson. Tyler Doyle scored 18 against Calloway County. The Knights are 5-0 against the region and 4-0 vs. the 43rd District. The Knights play Great Crossing Jan. 28 at Franklin County's Gary Moore Classic. They have never met in Great Crossing's four years with a basketball program.

 

3. Madison Central (9-8): The Indians, who have a 17-point win against once-beaten Warren Central but lost their starting point guard Hagan Harrison, went 1-2 last week. They lost to Ashland Blazer by 13 despite 19 points from Robby Todd and lost to Great Crossing by 11 despite 20 from Jayden West. They beat Wayne County with 23 points from Jaylen Davis at the 11th vs. 12th Region Classic. They are 6-1 against the region, 1-0 vs. the 44th District, and 4-2 since Harrison left the team, giving some confidence to keep them at No. 3 even though they can't be better without Harrison. That said, the losses are piling up and they could easily fall in the rankings with a bad week.

 

4. Henry Clay (9-8): The Blue Devils lost at Scott County by nine and beat Paul Laurence Dunbar and Bryan Station in a pair of close games. Ten of their last 11 games have been decided by nine points or fewer. Henry Clay's first six losses came against 12-4 Eastern, 13-4 Harrison County, 12-5 Simon Kenton, 12-5 Lincoln County, 12-5 Sayre and once-beaten McCracken County. The loss to Scott County shakes the confidence here but a win over Frederick Douglass will restore it. They have beaten Conner, Highlands and Butler, but the losses are starting to pile too high. They are 5-3 against the region.

 

5. Frederick Douglass (14-2): The Broncos pushed their winning streak to 11 with victories against Bryan Station, Scott County and Lafayette. Kai Simpson paced the team with 20 points against Bryan Station. Aveion Chenualt led with 22 versus Scott County. Armelo Boone had a team-high 24 vs. Lafayette. They are 5-2 versus the region and 3-0 against the 42nd District. Henry Clay beat them three times last season, including in the 11th Region tournament final, so they are still not ahead of Henry Clay, who they play Tuesday in their big chance to prove me wrong. Only losses are to regional rankings leaders Great Crossing and Lexington Catholic, but they have beaten just three Kentucky teams with winning records.

 

5. Madison Southern (12-6): The Eagles finished the week 1-1, with a win against Estill County and a loss to West Jessamine at the 11th vs. 12th Region Classic. Zach Hudson dropped in 29 points and Jay Rose had 22 against Estill County. The Eagles have beaten 12-5 South Laurel and handed Pulaski County one of its two losses but they've played just two games inside the region, going 1-1.

 

7. Lexington Christian (14-3): The Eagles went 3-0 for the week, beating Berea, then taking down Frankfort Christian and Sayre at the 11th Region All "A" Classic. Saxton Howard scored 21 points against Berea and 23 vs. Frankfort Christian. Connor Martin led the way with 25 against Frankfort Christian. The Eagles have won eight of their last nine games. They are 7-1 against the region, 3-1 vs. the 43rd District but have beaten just two Kentucky teams with winning records.

 

8. Sayre (12-5): The Spartans went 2-1 at the 11th Region All "A" Classic, beating Model and Frankfort and losing to Lexington Christian. Ian Reesor scored 25 points against Frankfort. The Spartans have beaten Henry Clay and are 5-2 vs. the region.

 

9. Scott County (8-11): The Cardinals went 2-1 for the week beating Henry Clay, then Mercer County at the 11th vs. 12th Region Classic. They lost to Frederick Douglass.

 

10. Western Hills (7-8): The Wolverines beat Frankfort for the second time this season in their only game of the week. They have other regional wins versus Sayre and Franklin County. They are 7-3 since the 0-5 start, and 3-1 vs. the 41st District.

 

11. Frankfort (9-7): The Panthers went 1-2 for the week beating Bullitt Central, losing to Western Hills, and falling to Sayre at the 11th Region All "A" Classic. Beat Lafayette but hasn't beaten a Kentucky team with a winning record. They are 4-5 since the 5-2 start.

 

12. Bryan Station (4-13): The Defenders finished 0-2 for the week, losing to Frederick Douglass and Henry Clay, extending their losing streak to nine. They have just two regional wins, against Western Hills and Lafayette. Another win was a 17-point victory against 12-5 Letcher County Central, which is second in RPI in the 14th District.

 

13. Paul Laurence Dunbar (6-11): The Bulldogs went 1-2 with a win against Tates Creek and losses to Henry Clay and Central. Nick Spalding scored 22 points in the victory The Bulldogs have just one other win against a regional foe and that came against Brian Station in the season opener. They have not beaten a Kentucky team with a winning record.

 

14. Tates Creek (6-9): Lost to Paul Laurence Dunbar in the only game of the week. Has lost four of five and hasn't beaten a state team with a winning record.

 

15. Lafayette 6-12): The Generals split two games, beating Wayne County and losing to Frederick Douglass. Lafayette's only regional win in nine games came against Franklin County.

 

16. Franklin County (7-7): The Flyers were idle last week. Their only regional win in six games came against Frankfort Christian.

 

17. Model (5-9): The Patriots lost their only game against Sayre at the 11th Region All "A" Classic. They are 0-3 against the region.

 

18. Frankfort Christian (7-12): The Royals went 2-2 during a busy week. They went 1-1 at the 11th Region All "A" Classic with a win against Trinity Christian and a loss to Lexington Christian. They followed with a win vs. Whitefield Academy and a loss to Casey County. They are 0-4 against the region.

 

19. Berea (6-13): The Pirates finished 0-2 last week, losing to Lexington Christian and Adair County. Berea has yet to play a regional game.

The region's top six scorers (through Monday):

Caleb Hack, Frankfort 25.4
Noah Sowders, Frankfort Christian 25.1
Jay Rose, Madison Southern 22.6
Jaylen Davis, Madison Central 21.2
Javeon Campbell, Western Hills 21.2
Nick Spalding, Paul Laurence Dunbar 20.8

Note: Hack and Campbell aren't showing up in the KHSAA list of top 50 scorers, so this is a little more accurate and updated.

*The KHSAA top 50 list only includes players from teams having two or fewer missing stat reports at compilation time.