Now that the season is over we look to next year. 

Adair County- Can they repeat? They return their top 7 scorers from the region championship team led by Cochran and Loy. Last year a target wasn't on their back but now they will have a big one. 

Bethlehem- Region runner up last year as a surprise. Can they replicate things or was this a one off? They lost some key pieces but do return their best player Nick Osborne. 

North Hardin- Last year was supposed to be their season with a loaded roster but they fell short in the region semis. How will they bounce back after losing their top 3 players Smith, Boykins, and Wiley.

Central Hardin- Another team who went all in on last season but lost in the first round of the district. They lose region player of the year Decker, as well as Ace Jaggers, and Donovan Stone. Should be a young team next year.

Elizabethtown- Could the Etown run of dominance be over now? They lost the Evans brothers as well as 2 other starters. Will James Haire retire or keep coaching? 

Taylor County- The cardinals beat Adair for the district but was upset first round of region by Bethlehem. Now changes occur as Montrelle Irvin is out as head coach. They also must replace 3 starters in Clements, Wise, and Johnson. Could it be a rebuilding year? A lot probably depends who the coach will be.

Green County- They was upset in the first round of district but return all but one starter though he was a big contributor. They will have Blakeman and Marr two of the top 10 players in the region so this is their chance to make a run if they are going to do it with a big senior class. 

Caverna- They were young last year but made some noise though going out first round of district. Their top 2 guys in Craine and Martin return, will they finally get out of district and make a region run?

Larue County- Arguably the favorites in the region last year going into it they was upset in the semis by Bethlehem. They lose top player Daniel Allen but everyone else returns. They should be in the thick of the region contenders once again.

Washington County- The big question here is will Gabe Weis return? Prep school rumors are out there for him and they lost multiple starters around him.

Well to answer one of those questions, Weis will not return for Washington County. He is heading to prep school according to social media posts from a few days ago. 

15 hours ago, 5thregionbasketball said:

Well to answer one of those questions, Weis will not return for Washington County. He is heading to prep school according to social media posts from a few days ago. 

Yes this should rule Washington out as a contender. I think the region will be a 5-6 horse race next year. Adair, Caverna, Larue, Green, Taylor could sneak in if have additions. Central could be solid but no Decker.

I think Adair is #1 by a pretty good distance. LaRue, Caverna, and Green seem to all be neck and neck. North, Central, and Etown could get some guys in to lift them. The wildcard is Taylor County and who they end up hiring. If it's Gatewood I'm sure he isn't coming solo.

3 hours ago, gridiron guy said:

I think Adair is #1 by a pretty good distance. LaRue, Caverna, and Green seem to all be neck and neck. North, Central, and Etown could get some guys in to lift them. The wildcard is Taylor County and who they end up hiring. If it's Gatewood I'm sure he isn't coming solo.

Gatewood is supposed to be new coach at Evangel

Is Evangel open?

I haven’t heard anything about Coach Miller leaving?

1 minute ago, Falcon Pride said:

Is Evangel open?

I haven’t heard anything about Coach Miller leaving?

I don't think he's leaving this season. From what I understood, basically Gatewood is in line for when Miller retires which from the people I talked to would be within the next season or two. 

Got it!

Bump.

Some of the more recent big news out of the 5th region is the injury to Cochran from Adair. He had a severe leg/ankle injury in AAU a few weeks ago. Should be back before the season but will miss the entire summer. 

10 minutes ago, ACfan4 said:

Some of the more recent big news out of the 5th region is the injury to Cochran from Adair. He had a severe leg/ankle injury in AAU a few weeks ago. Should be back before the season but will miss the entire summer. 

If the injury was as severe as I heard will he be back for the start of the season? or the season in general? Prayers for a good recovery.

 

20 hours ago, Waterboy70 said:

If the injury was as severe as I heard will he be back for the start of the season? or the season in general? Prayers for a good recovery.

Ended up a better prognosis than believed. 4-5 month return to sports. 

2 hours ago, ACfan4 said:

 

Ended up a better prognosis than believed. 4-5 month return to sports. 

That is great to hear. He seems to be a great young man.

Former Taylor County head coach Montrelle Irvin has taken an associate head coaching job with Green County. Irvin was replaced by Josh Kays as head coach at Taylor this offseason.

Saw a lot of the top teams in the region play this summer at various events. Anyone have a way too early ranking or things from summer ball they would like to chime in about leading into next season?