The regular season has finally come to an end and it’s the best time of year for high school basketball. This week’s rankings see a few changes at the top. Larue moves up to the #1 spot after defeating #1 Washington County. Elizabethtown moves into the #2 spot after defeating Taylor County. Taylor and Washington Counties round out the top 4.  5-9 remain the same. Bethlehem and Green County swap places, Campbellsville and Bardstown swap places and Marion County and John Hardin swap places.

Here's this week’s rankings and then the district previews:

Larue County	19-7
Elizabethtown	18-9
Taylor County	22-6
Washington County	21-8
Adair County	22-8
North Hardin	15-11
Caverna	19-9
Central Hardin	18-12
Bethlehem	18-12
Green County	15-14
Hart County	14-12
Bardstown	9-15
Campbellsville	11-19
Nelson County	9-20
Fort Knox	9-17
Marion County	3-25
John Hardin	2-25
Thomas Nelson	3-26

 

20^th District @Marion County

1vs4- Taylor County/Marion County

Taylor should win this game handedly.  Taylor defeated Marion in both of their previous matchups. The first by 9 points and then the second much more decisively, winning by 49 points. Taylor wins with a running clock.

2vs3- Adair County/Campbellsville

This semifinal should be more competitive than the first semifinal. The two teams split the regular season matchups. Both teams winning on the road. Adair won the last game by 5 and overall is playing much better basketball than Campbellsville. However, Coach Keith Adkins is one of the best coaches in the region (state as well) and he’ll have a gameplan that should keep this one close. In the end I think Adair pulls this one out in a 7-10 point win.

Finals-Taylor County/Adair County

Taylor won both regular season games. Taylor has been dominant all season with the exception of the last 2 weeks, when their schedule has gotten noticeably more difficult. I think Taylor wins this game and captures another 20^th District Championship.

19th District @Bardstown

4vs5- Nelson County/Thomas Nelson

Nelson won both regular season games against the Generals. This should be no different. Nelson by 15.

1vs4- Washington County/Nelson County

Washington County won both regular season games by 20 and 21 points respectively. That trend should continue as well. Washington by 20+

2vs3 Bardstown/Bethlehem

This hasn’t been a typical year for Bardstown and Boo Brewer. But one thing that is the same is Bardstown’s competitiveness in the 19^th District. 5 of Bardstown’s 9 wins have been district wins, good enough to give them the #2 seed. They won both games against Bethlehem in the regular season, and with this game being at Bardstown, I’ll give the slight edge to Bardstown. This should be a fun game to watch, Bardstown by 5.

Finals- Washington County/Bardstown

2005 was the last time that Washington County has won the 19^th district championship. Bardstown and Washington have turned into a pretty heated rivalry the past few seasons so I expect this game to be high intensity, and Washington County edging out Bardstown. Washington won both previous games by 8 points each.

18^th District @Hart County

1vs4- Larue County/Hart County

These two teams only met once in the regular season, and it was a 29 point win for Larue County. The Hawks are playing as well as any team in the region. Larue wins this one by 20.

2vs3- Caverna/Green County

Green is playing much better as of late. But Caverna will be too much for the Dragons. If Caverna can get the inside out game going early, it could be ugly early. Caverna by 15.

Finals- Larue County/Caverna

Larue defeated Caverna by 20 points and 19 points within just a couple of days of each other about 3 weeks ago. Not much has changed in those 3 weeks. Larue by 15 to win another 18^th District Championship.

17^th District Tournament @Elizabethtown

This district is the toughest to predict.

4vs5- John Hardin/Fort Knox

These two split in the regular season with John winning the last game. John has lost their last 6 games, their last win coming against Fort Knox. But the schedule has been brutal. Metcalfe County, North Hardin, Elizabethtown, Lyon County, Trinity & Eastern. I’ll give the edge to John Hardin. John by 8.

1vs4- Elizabethtown/John Hardin

This is really the only game I’m very confident in picking in this district. Etown wins this game going away. Should be a running clock by middle of 3^rd quarter.

2vs3- North Hardin/Central Hardin

This may be the best first round matchup of any games in the region. North won both previous encounters, the largest margin of victory was 7. It’s difficult to beat a team 3 times in a season. I think this game hinges on Brett Decker for Central to have a huge game. If he does Central has a shot. If he doesn’t North will face Etown for the district championship. At the end of the day, I’ll take North in a classic by 3

Finals- Elizabethtown/North Hardin

Should also be a classic. It’s role reversal for North Hardin. Etown beat North both times in the regular season, but can they do it a 3^rd time? In this game, for North to have a shot, Shaun Boykins has to have a great game. If he can keep them in the game, they have a chance. But playing at home will certainly favor the Panthers, so I’ll take the Panthers by 6 in a great game.

District Winner Predictions:

17^th- Elizabethtown
18^th- Larue County
19^th- Washington County
20^th- Taylor County

District Runner-up Predictions:

17^th- North Hardin
18^th- Caverna
19^th- Bardstown
20^th- Adair County

Larue County defeated Hart County 15 to advance to 18th district championship. Nelson County ends Thomas Nelson season by 30.

Games tonight (Tuesday, 2/21)

17th District
(4) John Hardin vs (5) Fort Knox

18th District
(2) Caverna vs (3) Green County

19th District 
(1) Washington County vs (4) Nelson County

Elizabethtown will represent the 5th Region at Rupp. They were better all game vs Taylor County, have beaten North twice, are better than either Washington County or LaRue County and have the best coach in the Region. 

2 hours ago, Hardin County Preps said:

Elizabethtown will represent the 5th Region at Rupp. They were better all game vs Taylor County, have beaten North twice, are better than either Washington County or LaRue County and have the best coach in the Region. 

I think you're right about the best coach, at least in the schools you mentioned. I also think you're right that they'll end up at Rupp. But I think the region will be as fun as it has been in a few years because their is no dominant team. The region draw will be fun and hopefully create some exciting matchups. If the seeding holds up and all district winners are #1's, then whoever draws North will have the most difficult path, which would also help Etown's path to the finals. 

Tuesday Night Results:

17th District:
(4) John Hardin 54-46 Ft. Knox (5)

18th District:
(3) Green County 58-56 Caverna (2)

19th District:
(1) Washington County 59-46 Nelson County (4)

Wednesday Games

19th District:
(2) Bardstown vs (3) Bethlehem

20th District
(1) Taylor County vs (4) Marion County
(2) Adair County vs (3) Campbellsville

Wednesday night results:

Bardstown defeated Bethlehem in an overtime thriller. Great game!! 

Taylor & Adair both win to advance to finals.

Thursday Night:

Etown drubs John Hardin
Central Hardin plays very well to defeat North Hardin

District Finals:
Friday Night 
18th District: (3) Green vs (1) Larue

Saturday Night
17th District: (3) Central Hardin vs (1) Elizabethtown
19th District: (2) Bardstown vs (1) Washington County
20th District: (2) Adair County vs (1) Taylor County

I don't think the Dragons can beat Larue, but I think it will be much more competitive than the last meeting. I'd take Larue by about 12 in this game. 

I'm also not sold on Elizabethtown as the Region champ, Larue just beat Elizabethtown two weeks ago by 9. I believe E-Town is one of 5 teams who have a legitimate chance of winning the region, and wouldn't be surprised to see any of the the five win the region at all. 

2 hours ago, GC-Dragons said:

I don't think the Dragons can beat Larue, but I think it will be much more competitive than the last meeting. I'd take Larue by about 12 in this game. 

I'm also not sold on Elizabethtown as the Region champ, Larue just beat Elizabethtown two weeks ago by 9. I believe E-Town is one of 5 teams who have a legitimate chance of winning the region, and wouldn't be surprised to see any of the the five win the region at all. 

I know Hardin County Preps will disagree but from what I've seen so far in the post season I'd say, Etown, Larue, Washington, Taylor, Central Hardin, & Adair could all contend for regional championship. Just depends on the draw. I'll be interested to see how Green County plays tonight against Larue. 12 is a good pick. And if Central can play with the intensity that they did against North, they'll be a tough out and not a draw I'd want in the first round of the region. 

1 hour ago, 5thregionbasketball said:

I know Hardin County Preps will disagree but from what I've seen so far in the post season I'd say, Etown, Larue, Washington, Taylor, Central Hardin, & Adair could all contend for regional championship. Just depends on the draw. I'll be interested to see how Green County plays tonight against Larue. 12 is a good pick. And if Central can play with the intensity that they did against North, they'll be a tough out and not a draw I'd want in the first round of the region. 

I saw Central Hardin once this year - North Oldham beat them by about 35.  Naturally - given that score - they didn’t look very good, and to be honest Decker didn’t look like a D1 kid. Obviously, it’s just one game and all that, but typically a D1 kid looks D1 even on a bad day.  

Decker had 30 last night against North Hardin. Central Hardin played well but North Hardin had a dreadful shooting second half and couldn't hit anything. I think Central Hardin goes down vs Elizabethtown Saturday night. Elizabethtown should still be considered the favorite at the Region Tournament. I have seen Taylor County, Washington County, and LaRue County this season and Elizabethtown has the bigs inside with the Evans brothers and solid guard play that will give these teams trouble next week. Central Hardin will be hard pressed to replicate the game vs North Hardin again. Decker will need to score 25-30 points in any game for Central Hardin to have a chance. Central Hardin's big weakness is offensive and defensive rebounding. Central Hardin's only quality win all year was early in the season against Elizabethtown in overtime. I will take a James Haire coached team late in the season all week long and on Sunday vs the field. 

On 2/24/2023 at 1:31 PM, 5thregionbasketball said:

I know Hardin County Preps will disagree but from what I've seen so far in the post season I'd say, Etown, Larue, Washington, Taylor, Central Hardin, & Adair could all contend for regional championship. Just depends on the draw. I'll be interested to see how Green County plays tonight against Larue. 12 is a good pick. And if Central can play with the intensity that they did against North, they'll be a tough out and not a draw I'd want in the first round of the region. 

Green played Larue within 8. They were down just 3 with 3 minutes to go. It was a much closer game than the final score indicated. Larue is a very good team and played the way you expect the favorite to play down the stretch. I expect it to be a very fun and wide open region.
Green Could pull an upset depending on the draw and I wouldn’t be surprised in the least. If they can stay away from Central/E-town in round one, I think they could beat any of the other teams left on a good night. Give me E-town/Larue as the favorites with Taylor/Washington/Central just a step back from those two.