1st Region: Week 10

Let's look at PTown Dad's tiers.  I reserve the right to change these early and often:

Tier 1 - McCracken Co. - yes, I know that Marshall came very close to beating them twice, but they remain undefeated in the 1st Region, and I think they're the team to beat.

Tier 2 - Marshall, Graves and Murray - I think that with some luck any of these three teams could make a run at the CFSB Center and have a decent chance at knocking off the Mustangs.

Tier 3 (in alphabetical order) - Ballard, Calloway, Carlisle, CFS, Mayfield, St. Mary, Tilghman.  The Comets are the cream of the crop here, but I think any of these teams could beat one another on any given night.  I just don't see any of these heading to Rupp Arena.

Tier 4 - Everyone else.  Don't see these teams making any noise at the regional tourney.

Key Games this week:

Mon - St. Mary at McCracken, Ballard at CFS

Tues - McCracken at Murray (PTown Dad's Game of the Week), Marshall at Mayfield, St. Mary at Tilghman, Calloway at Graves

Fri - McCracken at Graves, Calloway at Tilghman, Carlisle at Mayfield, Ballard at St. Mary

Sat - Hopkinsville at McCracken, Marshall at Mt. Vernon (IL)

Here are my rankings:

1. McCracken Co. (20-3) - W 52-52 at Mt. Vernon (IL), W 78-42 vs Christian Co.

The Mustangs just keep on rolling!  I heard that Garrett Miller re-injured his wrist in the Christian County game, and I hope that it is not very serious.  He is a guy who can score the ball in many different ways.  But here's the thing - the Mustangs may still be the best team in the region without him.  That's how deep this team is!

2. Marshall Co. (16-6) - L 52-55 vs Murray, W 80-54 at Calloway, W 73-47 at Pinckneyville (IL)

The Marshals were rolling along in the Murray game with a 13-point lead at halftime until the wheels fell off in the 3rd quarter.  No worries, they righted the ship when they traveled to Calloway and came out with a comfortable win - Matthew Langhi scored 27 points in that one.  They get the #1 seed in the 4th District, and I believe that they will play Christian Fellowship. 

3. Graves Co. (13-9) - W 61-49 at Ballard Mem., W 53-41 vs Mayfield, W 55-48 at Murray

What a nice week for the Eagles!  They clinched the #1 seed in the 3rd District and that means they are guaranteed a spot in the regional tournament.  They also went to Murray and pulled out a very nice win.  This team seems to be peaking at the right time, and Ty Cavette is leading the way.

4. Murray (18-4) - W 55-52 at Marshall Co., W 81-62 vs CFS, L 48-55 vs Graves Co.

I had the Tigers penciled in at the #2 spot but then the surprising loss to Graves on Saturday.  However, they showed they can play with the top of this region when they went to Marshall and pulled out the come-from-behind win.  The game at Marshall was tied at 52 until Micah Wyatt nailed the winning three-pointer.  I've given the Game of the Week to the McCracken game at Murray - the Tigers have shown they can slay a giant, and we will see if they can do it again.

5. Carlisle Co. (17-6) - W 60-53 vs Ballard Mem., W 59-53 at Calloway Co., W 42-37 at Ballard Mem. W 72-56 vs Livingston Central

The Comets are also rolling along and 6-9 Forward Wyatt Rickard is averaging a double-double with 20 PPG and 10 RPG.  I think they should breeze to the 1st District tournament championship.  They're just on another level compared to the other 1st District teams.

6. St. Mary (12-11) - W 79-50 at Fulton Co., W 85-67 at Madisonville, W 80-51 at CCA, W 65-51 at Eldorado (IL)

The Vikings have now rattled off six wins in a row.  Freshman Griffin Mayes is scoring 16 ppg and pulling down 5 boards per game.  Interested to see how they do on Monday and Tuesday on the road against their 2nd District foes of McCracken and Tilghman.

7. Paducah Tilghman (6-14) - W 59-56 vs Hopkinsville, W 73-40 at Meridian (IL)

Quite possibly the most athletic team in the region and they had a very good home win against Hopkinsville on Tuesday.  Carruthers missed the Meridian game and I hear that he needs to take care of some business in the classroom - he's a very key player for the Tornado.

8. Ballard Mem. (6-18) - L 53-60 at Carlisle Co., L 49-61 at Graves Co., W 58-45 vs Hickman Co., L 37-42 vs Carlisle Co. 

The Bombers have played such a tough schedule, and they seem to be in most of their games, but have some difficulty closing the deal.  The 3rd District semifinal against Mayfield is really hard to predict.

9. Mayfield (12-9) - L 41-53 at Graves Co., W 63-54 vs UHA

Nice bounce back win for the Cardinals against University Heights.  This team has a lot of talent and if they can put it together I think they could make some postseason noise.

10. Christian Fellowship (14-8) - W 56-45 at Trigg Co., L 62-81 at Murray

Elijah Griggs scored exactly half of their points - 28 - in their victory at Trigg.

11. Calloway (7-16) - I think that's now a seven-game skid for the Lakers.  A couple of the losses surprised me.  Luke Armstrong is still a beast.

12. Community Christian Acad. (12-13) - great victory this week over Hickman Co.!

13. Hickman Co. (10-11) - Freshman Logan Grimmett led the team in scoring this week in their win over Fulton City

14. Fulton Co. (6-10) - Zay Kinney scored 25 points in a recent win.

15. Fulton City (3-19) - I think there's a shot that the Bulldogs get their 4th win this week when they play S. Fulton.