9^th Region: Week 7

It was another fun week in the 9^th Region. I was able to watch a lot of games (both in person and online) and it is time to combine Tiers 2 and 3. Cov Cath is clearly above the rest of the region, but I think any team in the 2-9 range could beat any other team. I also think that one (or both of) my Tier 4 teams (Cooper and St. Henry) will get an upset victory in the region sooner than later. (Tier 1) Cov Cath looks like they are going to roll through the region with not much resistance. Highlands actually kept the game closer than expected given how well Cov Cath shot the ball, but I can’t see any 9^th region team beating the Colonels this year. I think Highlands is a clear #2 right now, but they could have easily lost to Dixie earlier in the week. Lloyd moves up to #3 despite losing their only game of the week to Great Crossing. Holy Cross drops to #4 after their loss to Newport, but I still expect them to pile up wins with improved 3-point shooting. No changes with Ryle (#5), Dixie (#6), and Conner (#7). Newport (#8) jumps Beechwood (#9) with the All A Regional Tournament Championship, and they could continue to climb in the rankings in the coming weeks. Tier 4 teams Cooper and St. Henry remain in their own Tier for now.

 

Tier 1: The Favorite

1.       Covington Catholic (16-1) [last week 1; preseason 1]

Cov Cath continues to dominate, blowing out Walton and Holmes before beating rival Highlands by 20. I think Athens McGillis (23.8 ppg) is starting to separate himself as the favorite for 9^th Region Player of the Year, as he continues to put up big numbers for the clear best team in the region. Braeden Myrick (17.9 ppg) and Donovan Bradshaw (11.4) both are playing well and scoring in double figures, while Cash Harney (9.1 ppg) is contributing in multiple ways and scoring more of late. Tough upcoming week for the Colonels as they play St. Xavier (OH), McNicholas (OH), Trinity (Louisville), and Centerville (OH).

Mon, 1/19 St. Xavier (OH) at Cintas Center; Tues, 1/20 McNicholas (OH) at CCH; Fri, 1/23 Trinity at CCH; Sat, 1/24 at CCH

 

Tiers 2/3: Good/Solid Teams that are Not Cov Cath

2.       Highlands (14-2) [last week 2; preseason 3]

Highlands escaped Dixie with a victory early in the week before falling by 20 to Cov Cath. I feel pretty good about the Bluebirds in the #2 spot, and I think they should feel pretty good about losing by only 20 to Cov Cath (who continues to shoot lights out from 3), which just goes to show how much separates the Colonels from the rest of the 9^th Region. The Bluebirds continue to show great balance - Finn Bouldin (13.4 ppg) Nathan Rickard (11.2 ppg), Owen Ebert (11.0 ppg), Vincent Listerman (9.9 ppg), and Tayden Lorenzen (12.8 ppg). Highlands has three games this week, including Cooper and two district games (Bellevue and NewCath).

Wed, 1/21 Cooper at Highlands; Thurs, 1/22 at Bellevue; Sat, 1/24 at Newport Catholic

3.       Lloyd (10-4) [last week 4; preseason 7]

Lloyd lost their only game of the week at home (68-65) to defending State Champion Great Crossing. 9^th Region Player of the Year candidate Blaackar had another big game, going for 33 points and is now averaging 23.6 ppg. Sophomore Jason Kabeya and senior Isiah Golsby are also in double figures. Three games this week, including a big one at home against Beechwood.

Mon, 1/19 Newport Catholic at Lloyd; Fri, 1/23 Beechwood at Lloyd; Sat, 1/24 at Ludlow

4.       Holy Cross (15-3) [last week 3; preseason 2]

Holy Cross got two wins in the All A Regional Tournament (including a good one against Beechwood), before getting upset in the final by Newport. I moved the Indians down another spot as they continue to struggle from the 3-point line in their losses. In their three losses, Holy Cross is a combined 5 of 42 (including 0 for 10 against Newport) from the 3-point line. Congrats to Luke Arlinghaus (18.9 ppg) on scoring his 1,000^th point, who continues to lead Holy Cross in scoring with Nate Rominder (14.1 ppg) and Brady Gabbard (14.9 ppg) also scoring in double figures. The Indians were planning on being in Owensboro for the All A State Tournament so no games scheduled this week.

No Games

5.       Ryle (10-6) [last week 5; preseason 4]

Ryle seems to be getting better each week. They destroyed a pretty solid Grant County team (64-26) and beat district rival Cooper by 20. Ryle has three double-digit scorers, AJ Davis (11.8 ppg), Holden Smith (17.2 ppg), and Anthony Coppola (12.2 ppg). The Raiders get Oldham County on Monday before facing another district rival Conner on the road.

Mon, 1/19 Oldham County at Cintas Center (OH); Fri, 1/23 at Conner

6.       Dixie Heights (12-5) [last week 6; preseason 6]

Dixie lost their only game of the week to Highlands at home. Dixie led throughout most of the 2^nd and 3^rd quarters but could not close it out. Dixie is led by Max Rubemeyer (16.4 ppg), Tyson Metzger (11.8 ppg), and Hunter Seng (10.4 ppg). The Red Colonels have two home games this week, facing off against Beechwood and Tates Creek.

Tues, 1/20 Beechwood at Dixie Heights; Fri, 1/23 Tates Creek at Dixie Heights

7.       Conner (9-6) [last week 7; preseason 5]

Conner blew out district rival Boone County in their only game of the week. Louden continues to lead the region in scoring, averaging 24.4 ppg (through 15 games) while Tyler Warner (12.1 ppg) is also scoring in double figures. Just one game again this week, but it is a big one as they get Ryle at home in a district battle.

       Fri, 1/23 Ryle at Conner

8.       Newport (11-4) [last week 9; preseason 9]

Congrats to the Wildcats for winning the 9^th Region All A Tournament, which included an epic championship game with Holy Cross. Junior Amontae Lowe (22 ppg) was the best player on the floor and scored 25 despite being face-guarded the whole game. It’s the first time this year I’ve seen Newport and I was impressed. They played great defense, took care of the basketball, were really good in transition, and made open shots (5 of 9 from 3-point line). They have several other players making contributions, including Keegan Farrel (9.6 ppg, 6.4 rebounds), Irvan Nichols (8.5 ppg), and Davae Andrews-Glover (7.4 ppg). Newport will head to Owensboro for the Kentucky State All A Tournament this week, beginning with Lexington Christian.

Thur, 1/22 Lexington Christian at Owensboro Sportscenter; TBD at Owensboro Sportscenter

9.       Beechwood (12-5) [last week 8; preseason 8]

The Tigers had two blowout wins to start the All A Regional Tournament before falling to Holy Cross by 11. I thought Beechwood played well in the game but struggled to find any rhythm on offense, with the Indians face-guarding and playing a box and 1 on Topmiller, holding him to 16 points on 4-16 shooting. Beechwood will have to find scoring options (other than Topmiller, 20.0 ppg) with second leading scorer Owen McCormack out for the year. A really tough week ahead for the Tigers as they face Dixie and Lloyd on the road.

Tues, 1/19 at Dixie; Fri, 1/23 at Lloyd

Tier 4

10.   Cooper (2-13) [last week 11; preseason 11]

Cooper went 0-2 on the week, falling to South Dearborn (IN) and Ryle.  The Jaguars (through 14 games) are led by Julian Knuckles (11.1 ppg), Elijah Philpot (10.9 ppg) and Cole Stanton (11.3 ppg). Cooper has just one game this week, a big district matchup at Ryle.

Fri, 1/23 at Ryle 

 

11.   St. Henry (6-9) [last week 11; preseason 10]

The Crusaders beat Ludlow before falling to Newport in the All A Regional Tournament.  St. Henry is led by sophomore Tyler Detzel (8.2 ppg) and junior Blake Stevens (8.2 ppg). St. Henry has three home games this week.

Wed, 1/21 Holmes at St. Henry; Thurs, 1/22 Newport Catholic at St. Henry; Sat, 1/24 Boone County at St. Henry

 

The Rest

12.   Newport Catholic (4-11)

NewCath got blown out by Beechwood in their only game of the week. This week the Breds get Lloyd, St. Henry, and Highlands.

13.   Holmes (4-10)

Bulldogs lost by 70 to Cov Cath this week. This week the Bulldogs will look to get wins against Bellevue, St. Henry, and Williamstown.

14.   Boone Co (5-11)

The Rebels lost their only game this week against Conner. Three games this week, including a district battle at Cooper.

15.   Ludlow (6-9)

Ludlow went 0-2 on the week. The Panthers have Villa, Heritage, and Lloyd this week.

16.   Dayton (12-4)

The Greendevils were 2-1 this week, beating Portland Christian and Trinity Christian and losing to Holy Cross in the All A. This week the Greendevils play Heritage on the road (game against Newport likely cancelled).

17.   Bellevue (5-9)

The Tigers lost to Newport in their only game of the week. This week Bellevue plays Holmes, Highlands, and Carroll County.

18.   Heritage (2-14)

Heritage lost to Beechwood and beat Landmark Christian. The Eagles have Dayton and Ludlow this week.

19.   Villa Madonna (3-12)

Villa went 0-2 on the week. The Vikings play Ludlow and Calvary Christian this week.

Give Newport a little love, especially after the week they just had.  Currently I don't believe there are eight teams in the 9th better than Newport.  Get out and watch some of these games.

22 hours ago, 4 Quarters said:

Give Newport a little love, especially after the week they just had.  Currently I don't believe there are eight teams in the 9th better than Newport.  Get out and watch some of these games.

I wanted to move Newport up more, but I would expect every team ranked ahead of them to beat them if they played head-to-head, even Holy Cross who they just beat (the stat that sticks out from All A Final, HC 0-10 from 3-point range, Newport 5-9). Newport will get plenty of chances to play these teams in the coming weeks, so we will see. With the way they defend and get out in transition, I think they can beat anyone on the region except Cov Cath, especially if they are able to hit some 3s. I think Amontae Lowe is the best player in the 9th region outside of the 3 seniors vying for Player of the Year (McGillis, Blaackar, Louden).

Per Holy Cross Boys Basketball, the Indians picked up a game tonight at Simon Kenton.

Varsity at 7:30.

JV at 6:00.