5th Region District Previews

17^th District

4vs5- John Hardin versus Fort Knox. (2/25/25, 7:30 pm. At North Hardin)
John Hardin has had a less than stellar season, finishing the regular season at 3-25. Fort Knox has had one of their better seasons in recent years finishing with a 6-17 record, which included a 4-game winning streak. Unfortunately for Ft. Knox, 2 of John Hardin’s 3 wins have come at their expense. I expect the Bulldogs to go 3-0 against the Golden Eagles.

1vs4/5 Winner- North Hardin versus John Hardin (2/27/25, 6:00 p.m. at North Hardin)
North Hardin has dominated the 17^th district in the regular season. North went undefeated in district play. In their previous two meetings North defeated John 79-53 and 83-49. With home court advantage, North Hardin should easily cruise into the finals of the 17^th district.

2vs3- Central Hardin versus Elizabethtown (2/27/25, 8:15 p.m. at North Hardin)
The Bruins have been the better team most of the year, but you should never count out a James Haire team, especially in the playoffs. Central defeated Etown both times in the regular season, winning 60-53 at Etown, and then on their home court 58-49 on February 5. The Bruins have not won a game since defeating Etown going 0-3 through the end of the season. This should be the most competitive of the 2 semifinals. Neither of the two teams played particularly well in this gym earlier in the season. I’ll give the slight edge to Central Hardin.

Finals- Prediction North Hardin (District winner) versus Central Hardin (District Runner-up) (3/1/25 7:30 p.m. at North Hardin)

18^th District

The 18^th district might be the most fun district to watch in the postseason in the 5^th Region.

1vs4- Green County versus Hart County (2/24/25, 8:00 p.m. at Larue County)
The Dragons have been playing well as of late, winners of 7 of their last 8. Green County went undefeated in district play during the regular season to secure the #1 seed. Green has defeated Hart previously by 21 points and 19 points respectively. Hart’s three main players, Shoulders, Trent and Crump are a nice trio and will have to play a near flawless game for the Raiders to overcome the Dragons. Green County simply has too many weapons in Eric James, Blakeman, Marr, Kouyate, Stone, Hodges and  Deacon James. Green County should win by double-digits again.

2vs3- Caverna versus Larue County (2/25/25, 8:00 p.m. at Larue County)
This to me is the most compelling first round district matchup in the entire region. Caverna comes in playing well, finishing the regular season at 15-11 and winning 7 out of their last 8 including a 22-point beatdown of Larue County at Caverna. The Hawks on the other hand are also playing well. They have won 5 in a row after dropping 3 straight district games to Green and Caverna. The first time these two teams played at Larue County, Larue won by 6, 58-52. Caverna’s biggest problem might be depth. They usually don’t play more than 6 guys. However, after watching both teams and the level of competition that they have played in the last few weeks, I think Caverna pulls off a narrow win.

Finals- Predictions Green County (District Winner) versus Caverna (District Runner-up) (2/28/25 at 8:00 p.m. at Larue County)

19^th District

4vs5- Nelson County versus Thomas Nelson (2/23/25. 7:00 p.m. at Bethlehem)
This game was played on Sunday evening. Thomas Nelson as the 5 seed, defeated the 4 seed, Nelson County by a score of 67-48. Carter Hamilton had 19 points for the Generals.

1vs5- Bardstown versus Thomas Nelson (2/25/25 7:00 p.m. at Bethlehem)
Bardstown also went undefeated in district play to secure the #1 seed in the 19^th district. The Tigers defeated Thomas Nelson 74-51 and 51-32 in both regular season games. This game shouldn’t be much different. Bardstown should win by double digits to advance to the 19^th district finals.

2vs3- Bethlehem versus Washington County (2/26/25, 7:00 p.m. at Bethlehem)
On paper these two teams seem to be somewhat even, maybe a slight edge to Bethlehem, but it appears to me at least, that these are two teams heading in opposite directions. Bethlehem has played fairly consistently all season. They weathered a stretch without leading scorer Nick Osborne, but he’s back and playing very well. Washington County on the other hand just seems to be falling apart. They’ve won 2 out of their last 5 but were absolutely throttled by Larue County to end the regular season. In the previous 2 meetings, Bethlehem won by 9 and 7 points respectively. I think Bethlehem wins by double digits and tries to recapture that spark that started in the district tournament last season that propelled them to the regional finals.

Finals- Predictions Bardstown (District Winner) versus Bethlehem (District Runner-up) (2/28/25 at 7:00 p.m. at Bethlehem)

20^th District

1vs4- Adair County versus Campbellsville (2/25/25, 5:30 p.m. at Adair County)
Adair County is playing as well as any team in the region and maybe state for that matter right now. Campbellsville is just the opposite. This season can’t end soon enough for Anthony Epps and the Eagles, but it will end on Tuesday. Indians roll past the Eagles.

2vs3- Taylor County versus Marion County (2/26/25, 5:30 p.m. at Adair County)
Marion County should absolutely call this season a success. Coming off just a couple of dreadful seasons, the Knights have won 17 games this year. And there may not be a team that plays harder for their coach than the Knights do for Matthew Thomas. Unfortunately, they have to play Taylor County in the first round of the district. Taylor County is also playing well. The Cardinals have won 5 in a row and 8 of their last 10. The two defeats during that stretch came from state ranked Adair County and Woodford County. Taylor narrowly defeated Marion in their first matchup by 7 points, but handled the Knights easily in the second matchup, winning by 27. Taylor County should win this one, and head to the finals to face Adair County.

Finals- Predictions: Adair County (District Winner) versus Taylor County (District Runner-up) (2/28/25, 6:00 p.m. at Adair County) 

I think this year the seeding will hold and we could very well see all #1 seeds as district champions and all #2 seeds as district runners-up. I think the lone exception could be Larue County, but I’ll still take Caverna in that district. That will make for a very fun regional tournament. Let the madness begin!!