15th Region: Week 8

Week 8 is now over. As a whole the region didn’t do great. A lot of teams lost more games than they won. Paintsville was one of the bright spots. They’re a very young team that may have arrived a year early. They’re shaping up for a big game with Martin County the week after this one. Martin dropped their opening game in the All A, but they did get a tough draw with Lyon County. A lot of teams are starting to play each other within the region so things should start to shake out a little bit more. Here are the rankings! Feel free to comment, critique, and inform!

Week 8 Rankings: 

1. Martin County (12-2): The region favorite went 0-1 this week with their only loss in the Kentucky All A. They lost by 19 to the eventual runner up in Lyon County. Devan Maynard led the way with 17 points and 6 boards. He had a great game going 8/13. Parker Watts had a rare off game and finished with 14 and 9. You obviously would’ve liked to have seen a more competitive game, but they did lose to a quality opponent. Martin Co finishes the month up with Huntington Prep at home tonight, Magoffin on the road tomorrow, Johnson Central at home on Friday, and Floyd Central on the road Saturday. An extremely busy week for the Cardinals. 

2. Paintsville (12-4): The Tigers went 2-0 this week. They beat Lawrence County by 10 while scoring 101, and then turned around and beat Johnson Central by 10 as well. Ethan Cole dominated against LC going for 31 and 13 while only missing one shot! He finished 14/15 from the field. He also led Paintsville against JC going for 21 on 69% shooting from the field. Paintsville is set to play Betsy Lane, Magoffin County, and Russell this week. A showdown with Martin County looms in the distance. 

3. Pike County Central (9-6): The Hawks had a disappointing week as they only played in one game and it was against Ashland. They were hammered, losing by a score of 36-69. You would’ve liked to have seen a much closer game, but nevertheless. They have no time to mope as they have four games this week. They play Phelps Tuesday, Magoffin County Thursday, Belfry Friday, and Johnson Central Saturday. 

4. Lawrence County (13-5): The Bulldogs had a chance to move up in the rankings, but dropped a 10 point game in a shootout with Paintsville. Kaiden Harris had a monster game going for 37 on 78% shooting. They couldn't get enough stops to win the game. They did rebound nicely with a 20 point win over Prestonsburg. Kaiden Harris led the way again with 23, while Gunnar Woods added 22. Lawrence Co plays Johnson Central, Floyd Central, and Lewis County this week. 

5. Johnson Central (7-7): The Golden Eagles had a down week going 1-2. They started off with a 12 point win over Shelby Valley at home. Austin Slone went off for 32 points in the win. But they dropped a ten point game on the road to Paintsville and then a 28 point game to Lex Cath in the Dan Cummins Shootout. No one was really able to get going in either of those losses. They will have the opportunity to rebound quickly with Lawrence County on the road Tuesday, Martin County on the road Friday, and then Pike County Central at home on Saturday. Three teams in front of them in the rankings. 

6. Pikeville (7-6): Pikeville went 0-2 this week but they dropped two games to the 13th region favorite and the 16th region favorite. They played close with Harlan County before the Black Bears eventually pulled away to win by 21. They also played Ashland tough before losing by 19. Pikeville will for sure be battle tested by the time the district and regions come along. Pikeville will have a chance to rebound this week with games at Shelby Valley on Tuesday, Huntington Expression Prep WV at home on Friday, and Betsy Lane at home on Saturday. 

7. Phelps (8-7): The Hornets had a decent week going 1-1. They won their first game over Fairview at home by 35. They then dropped a 17 point game on the road at Raceland. Things don’t get any easier with Pike County Central coming into town on Tuesday. They round the week out with Magoffin on Saturday. 

8. Shelby Valley (9-8): The Wildcats finished the week going 1-1. They had a tight four point win over Floyd Central with a final of 77-73. They then lost to Johnson Central by 12. They’ve yet to put in a stat report this season. If anyone knows further knowledge on SV please share! This week they play Pikeville at home on Tuesday, and then at East Ridge on Friday. 

9. Betsy Lane (9-6): The Bobcats got back to their winning ways with 2 big wins this week. Their first was a 12 point win over Knott County Central. They were led by Cameron Pente who had 16 points. They had four players in double digits in the win. They also picked up a 3 point win over Floyd Central at the end of the week. This week they travel to Paintsville on Monday, Morgan County on Tuesday, Prestonsburg on Friday, and Pikeville on Saturday. Talk about road warriors! 

10. Prestonsburg (7-8): The Blackcats went 2-1 on the week and got back in the win column. They’re still battling to get back to .500. They beat Mingo Central by 31 before losing to Lawrence County by 20. They did rebound nice with a 21 point win over Harlan Independent. This week they play Belfry tonight, East Ride Tuesday, and Betsy Lane on Friday. All the games are at home. 

11. Floyd Central (7-11): Floyd Central went 1-2 on the week. They lost to Shelby Valley and Betsy Lane. They beat West Carter. This week they play Knott County Central, Lawrence County, and Martin County. 

12. Belfry (6-10): Belfry spent another week off. That’s two weeks they’ve been off completely in the month of January. This week they play Prestonsburg, Mingo Central, Pike County Central, and Pineville. 

13. Magoffin (5-10): Magoffin went 1-1 last week with a win over East Ridge and a loss to Estill County. This week they play Martin County, Paintsville, and Phelps. 

14. East Ridge (5-11): East Ridge dropped their lone game to Magoffin County this week. This week they play Prestonsburg, Ridgeview VA, and Shelby Valley.