9th Region: Week 3

9^th Region: Week 3

Another week of thrilling games in the 9^th Region - Cov Cath won some big games and lost to Male in the King of the Bluegrass, Beechwood outlasted Finn Louden and Conner in overtime, and Highlands and Holy Cross continue their undefeated Decembers. Athens McGillis continues to score in bunches against some of the best teams in the state and is now averaging 25 ppg. Finn Louden looked good in his return after missing a few games with an injury and is now averaging almost 30 ppg. Lloyd and Anthony Blaackar struggled some in their only game of the week, but did manage a 4-point win over Cooper.

No changes in the first three Tiers this week. Cov Cath remains the clear #1 and regional favorite in Tier 1. If Cov Cath is going to compete for a state championship they are going to have to find a way to get Cash Harney and some of the other supporting cast more involved. I’m keeping Ryle in Tier 2 despite an underwhelming performance against Newport (who was without Amontae Lowe) and a loss to DeSales. The Raiders will have to play better to compete with Elder this week. I expect Holy Cross and Highlands to start getting some votes in the state rankings as they continue to pile up wins against solid teams. The balance of both these teams is impressive. Tier 3 remains the same. #5 Lloyd was almost upset by Cooper on the road and #6 Beechwood went 4-0 on the week, including a thrilling overtime win against #8 Conner. #7 Dixie fell just short against a good Danville Christian team and #9 Newport hung around against #4 Ryle without their star player Lowe. I made some changes in the bottom part of the rankings; winless Cooper moves ahead St. Henry with close losses to Campbell County and Lloyd.

Tier 1: The Favorite

1.       Covington Catholic (7-1) [last week 1; preseason 1]

Cov Cath got a 40-point win over Simon Kenton at home to start the week, before going 2-1 in their first three games of the King of the Bluegrass, beating Lee (AL) by almost 50 and state-ranked North Laurel by 4. They fell to state-ranked Louisville Male by 8, though they led for most of the game before falling behind in the 4^th quarter. The Colonels will meet North Oldham on Monday in the 5^th Place game. Through eight games, 9^th Region Player of the Year candidates Athens McGillis and Braeden Myrick are averaging 24.8 ppg and 19.0, respectively, with Donovan Bradshaw chipping in 11.8 ppg. It is notable that Cash Harney is only averaging 6 ppg (maybe easing way back into basketball after the long football season). After facing North Oldham in the KOB, Cov Cath heads to Sarasota, FL for a holiday tournament against tough competition.  

Sat, 12/27-29 TBA at Sarasota (FL)

Tier 2: The Contenders

2.       Holy Cross (8-0) [last week 2; preseason 2]

Holy Cross improved to 8-0 on the season blowing out both Brossart at home and Bertie (NC) in Montgomery County, and had two close wins over North College Hill and Scott County.  As expected, Holy Cross continues their balanced attack with Luke Arlinghaus (14.1ppg), Nate Rominder (15.0), and Brady Gabbard (14.7 ppg) all averaging double figure ppg. Big game on Monday this week as the Indians face Montgomery County on the road, and will also play Taylor (OH) next Saturday at Xavier University.

Mon, 12/22 at Montgomery County; Sat, 12/27 Taylor (OH) at Xavier

3.       Highlands (6-0) [last week 3; preseason 3]

Highlands welcomed back Tayden Lorenzen and picked up wins over Oldham County and state-ranked Ballard. With Lorenzen back, Highlands now has 5 double-digit scorers - Finn Bouldin (15 ppg) Nathan Rickard (14.3 ppg), Owen Ebert (11.7 ppg), Vincent Listerman (10 ppg), and Tayden Lorenzen (12 ppg). Highlands hosts Cincinnati Trailblazers and goes on the road to play Tupelo Christian (MS).

Tues, 12/23 Cincinnati Trailblazer (OH) at Highlands; Sat, 12/27 Tupelo Christian at Freeport

4.       Ryle (2-3) [last week 4; preseason 4]

Ryle went 1-1 for the second week in row, winning an ugly home game against Newport 45-30 and losing to DeSales at Carroll County. Ryle has two double-digit scorers (through 4 games), AJ Davis (17 ppg) and Holden Smith (13 ppg), with Anthony Coppola chipping in 7 ppg. The Raiders continue to play tough games – this week they play Elder and Paintsville at Scott and head to Lexington to play Sayre on Saturday.

Mon, 12/22 Elder at Scott; Tues, 12/23 Paintsville at Scott; Sat, 12/27 vs. Sayre at Lexington Christian Academy

Tier 3

5.       Lloyd (3-2) [last week 5; preseason 7]

The Juggs stay put in the #5 spot with a close win on the road at Cooper, who held 9^th Region Player of the Year candidate Blaackar to 7 points (15 below his season average). Lloyd goes to Carroll County on Tuesday to play against Fern Creek and then to Lexington to face North Hardin.

Tues, 12/23 Fern Creek at Carroll County; Saturday, 12/27 North Hardin at Lexington Christian Academy

6.       Beechwood (7-0) [last week 6; preseason 8]

The Tigers survived at Pendleton County (61-54) before pulling out a big home win against Conner in overtime. Beechwood also had two blowout wins in Berea over Lee and Mercer County. Beechwood sophomore Dylan Topmiller introduced himself to the 9^th region with 30 points against Conner and is averaging 21 ppg (48.5% 3FG), with seniors Owen McCormack (13 ppg) and Quinten Knasel (11 ppg) also chipping in (through 5 games).  Another busy week ahead with four games, including facing Walton Tuesday in Fort Mitchell and Pleasure Ridge Park (one of the top teams in the 6^th region) in Campbellsville on Friday.

Tues, 12/23 Walton Verona at Beechwood; Fri, 12/26 Pleasure Ridge Park at Campbellsville; Sat, 12/27 TBD at Campbellsville; Sun, 12/26 TBD at Campbellsville

7.       Dixie Heights (6-2) [last week 7; preseason 6]

Dixie went 2-1 on the week, beating Conner by 11 (Louden did not play in this game) and Augusta by 30, before falling to Danville Christian by 3. Dixie (through 6 games) has been led by Max Rubemeyer (17 ppg), Tyson Metzger (15 ppg), and Hunter Seng (10 ppg). The Red Colonels are at Carroll County and Estill County this week where they face Fern Creek and Breathitt County.  

Mon, 12/22 Fern Creek at Carroll County; Sat, 12/27 Breathitt County at Estill County

8.       Conner (3-5) [last week 8; preseason 5]

Conner lost two tough road games against teams just ranked ahead of them (Dixie and Beechwood) and to state-ranked Montgomery County by 1 point on the road. Louden did return against Beechwood and put up 27 points and almost helped Conner secure the comeback (they trailed by 13 at the half), before falling 72-70 in overtime. Louden also had 35 in the loss to Montgomery County and is averaging almost 30 ppg, while Brady Bushman (11 ppg) and Tyler Warner (13 ppg) are scoring in double figures. Another tough week ahead for the Cougars as they face Nicholas County and Bowling Green in holiday tournaments.

Mon, 12/22 Nicholas County at Montgomery County; Sat, 12/27 Bowling Green at Lexington Christian Academy

9.       Newport (3-1) [last week 9; preseason 9]

Newport went 1-1 on the week, blowing out Calvary Christian before falling by 15 at Ryle. Junior Amontae Lowe, who did not play in the Ryle game, is averaging 21 ppg, while newcomer Davae Andrews-Glover is scoring 9 ppg. Newport has 3 games this week, including Scott Holiday Tournament games against Simon Kenton and Cooper.

Mon, 12/22 Simon Kenton at Scott; Tues, 12/23 Cooper at Scott, Sun, 12/28 Evangel Christian at Bellevue

Tier 4

10.   Cooper (0-6) [last week 11; preseason 11]

Bad news and good news for Cooper this week. The bad news – they fell to 0-6 on the year with two home losses. The good news – they played Campbell County tough and only lost by 5, and had a really good shot to beat Lloyd before falling by 4. The Jaguars are led by Julian Knuckles 15 ppg.  I can’t imagine there is another team in Kentucky that has played a more difficult schedule than the Jaguars thus far, and things don’t get much easier with games against Paintsville, Newport, and Henry Clay this week. 

Mon, 12/22 Paintsville at Scott; Tues, 12/23 Newport at Scott; Sat, 12/27 Henry Clay at Ashland;  

11.   St. Henry (0-5) [last week 10; preseason 10]

Only 1 game this week for the Crusaders, an ugly home loss to Walton Verona (initial schedule had Villa?). Through 4 games, St. Henry is led by sophomore Tyler Detzel (10.5 ppg) and senior Caden Kunstek (9 ppg). St. Henry will look to get their first win of the year (and first for Coach Sullivan as a Crusader) at home against Newport.

Tues, 12/23 Ludlow at St. Henry; Sat, 12/27 at Henry County

The Rest

12.   Newport Catholic (1-5)

NewCath went 1-1 on the week, getting their first win against Taylor before falling to North Catholic (PA). Just one game this week on Monday at McNicholas.

13.   Holmes (4-4)

Bulldogs went 2-2 on the week, beating Heritage and Prestonsburg and losing to Brossart and West Carter. Just one game this week at Raceland.

14.   Boone Co (4-5)

Tough week for the Rebels as they went 1-3, winning a close home game against Augusta before losing three straight at a holiday tournament in Clinton County. Just one game this week against Heritage in the first game of the Bellevue Holiday tournament.

15.   Ludlow (4-5)

Ludlow went 2-1 this week, beating Dayton and Williamstown and losing to Campbell County. The Panthers get St. Henry and West Carter this week.

16.   Bellevue (3-3)

The Tigers went 1-1 on the week, blowing out Villa Madonna and losing by 20 to Pendleton County. Bellevue gets Williamstown next Sunday in their Holiday tournament.

17.   Dayton (5-2)

Dayton went 2-1 on the week and moves up in the rankings with a close loss to Ludlow and wins over Frankfort Christian and Villa. This week the Greendevils will get St. Patrick and Frankfort Christian.

18.   Heritage (1-6)

Heritage went 0-4 on the week. The Eagles go to Bellevue Sunday to play Boone County.

19.   Villa Madonna (2-4)

Villa went 0-2 on the week, losing to Bellevue and Dayton. Just one game this week against Ballard Memorial on the road.