South Oldham (29-5) narrowly escapes the 8th region with a tournament title and now will take on Danville Christian (29-3), the All A state and overall 12th region champs. This game is 6:00 PM Wednesday 3/26. 

DCA is a defensive juggernaut, allowing their opponent to eclipse 50 points only 8 times and 60 points just once (and they won that game). They are led in the backcourt by Titus Boyd and in the front court by Geu Leek Ateny as well as Lila Ayiei. Cole Dadisman is the other “impact” scorer with Eli Perez rounding out the top 5 in points per game. Coach Shaun Busick takes DCA to their first Sweet 16 in his first year at the helm.

South Oldham is helmed by Steve Simpson and features star Julian Miles. He averages over 22 points per game. The 3 point shooting numbers for the Dragons are staggering. Four players have over 100 3 point attempts. All of them are over forty percent from that range. Miles has shot over 300 threes. Second leading scorer Jake Fithian has 249 three point attempts. 

These are two vastly different styles of game play set to be on display in this one. It will be fun to see which team better asserts themselves.

13 minutes ago, se7ens said:

South Oldham (29-5) narrowly escapes the 8th region with a tournament title and now will take on Danville Christian (29-3), the All A state and overall 12th region champs. This game is 6:00 PM Wednesday 3/26. 

DCA is a defensive juggernaut, allowing their opponent to eclipse 50 points only 8 times and 60 points just once (and they won that game). They are led in the backcourt by Titus Boyd and in the front court by Geu Leek Ateny as well as Lila Ayiei. Cole Dadisman is the other “impact” scorer with Eli Perez rounding out the top 5 in points per game. Coach Shaun Busick takes DCA to their first Sweet 16 in his first year at the helm.

South Oldham is helmed by Steve Simpson and features star Julian Miles. He averages over 22 points per game. The 3 point shooting numbers for the Dragons are staggering. Four players have over 100 3 point attempts. All of them are over forty percent from that range. Miles has shot over 300 threes. Second leading scorer Jake Fithian has 249 three point attempts. 

These are two vastly different styles of game play set to be on display in this one. It will be fun to see which team better asserts themselves.

Styles make fights is an old saying in boxing.

It certainly applies here.

I feel South will be able to run their offense and get their open shots. Absolutely LETHAL when they are on.

68-55 South

On paper this looks like a tough matchup for DCA.  Somerset was able to get by DCA in the regional tournament last season, and push them to the brink in the first round of the region this season with a 3 point focused attack.  If South Oldham can take care of the basketball, and knock down their open looks, it will force DCA into playing a game that they aren't comfortable playing.  Should be a fun matchup with the clash of styles. 

I'm curious how the larger floor will affect DCA. They are so long that it often seems like they cover the entire court with just a couple of players, effectively shutting down most teams in the 12th Region. Will they be able to do the same against South Oldham? DCA will certainly have a size advantage but I'm not sure they've played a team that can shoot it as well as the Dragons.

South by double digits.

I have not had the pleasure of watching Danville Christian, but South Oldham will double their 3PA's, no matter how many they shoot. This has been Steve Simpson's method of success for many years, and it has gotten him another appearance at Rupp Arena. The one difference in this team and many before them is their openness on shots and discipline on the defensive end. 

In years prior it always felt like the Dragons had a 10-second shot clock to get the ball towards the rim. This year they are still quick to shoot, but they are getting much better looks. Miles is a playmaker up front, capable of finding anyone on the wing once he beats his defender. 

 

How is South rebounding the ball?  DCA can beat you up on the glass with two 7 footers.  I like the 3 PT centered attack because you will not score at the rim against DCA's shot blocking presence.  

The long layoff between the tourneys will likely be a boon for taller teams like DCA.

Outside shooting can greatly fluctuate, especially with a long period between games.

I seem to remember South getting to the Elite Eight some years ago. They played a team that used a 4-1 defense. They had a huge guy in the middle and four players around the arc. Completely shut down the Dragons three point game and made it difficult to get close to the basket. 
It will be interesting to see what kind of defense DCA employs with their big men! 

4 minutes ago, FootballBobcat said:

I seem to remember South getting to the Elite Eight some years ago. They played a team that used a 4-1 defense. They had a huge guy in the middle and four players around the arc. Completely shut down the Dragons three point game and made it difficult to get close to the basket. 
It will be interesting to see what kind of defense DCA employs with their big men! 

They run a 3-2 matchup zone.

Poll is currently at 10-7 South. 

On 3/21/2025 at 8:29 AM, Carl Spackler said:

On paper this looks like a tough matchup for DCA.  Somerset was able to get by DCA in the regional tournament last season, and push them to the brink in the first round of the region this season with a 3 point focused attack.  If South Oldham can take care of the basketball, and knock down their open looks, it will force DCA into playing a game that they aren't comfortable playing.  Should be a fun matchup with the clash of styles. 

I agree with this point. Somerset also had a lot of size to combat the two 7 footers. I don’t think South has that size? I genuinely don’t know though. 

Make 3s, compete on the glass with physicality and handle the trapping pressure keys to be effective vs DCA.  I do think the larger court will be to South’s advantage.  More space against this style defense is nice to have. 

How deep does DCA go? Will they play 3-4 players off the bench? Are they athletic? Can they take out one of the 7 footers and bring in a quicker player to defend the arc? Simpsons offense is quick passes to get a good shot around the 3point line. Sounds like DCA can defend the rim just fine. 

15 hours ago, FootballBobcat said:

How deep does DCA go? Will they play 3-4 players off the bench? Are they athletic? Can they take out one of the 7 footers and bring in a quicker player to defend the arc? Simpsons offense is quick passes to get a good shot around the 3point line. Sounds like DCA can defend the rim just fine. 

They play 8-9 kids, and get after you for the full 32 out of a 3/2 alignment.  Play super hard.  They will take one 7 footer sometimes.