9^th Region: Week 11

Total chaos in the 9^th region. Outside of clear #1 Covington Catholic (who continues to dominate), I should probably just give up trying to rank the teams and I’m throwing out my 3/4 Tiers as it’s clear that any team ranked 2 through 12 can beat each other. This week #2 is Ryle. I know that #3 Lloyd beat previous #2 Highlands this week, but Ryle is playing so well and has won 13 of 14 (with only loss to Cov Cath). #3 Lloyd could have easily lost to Highlands and Dixie but give Coach Walker and the Juggs credit as they continue to find ways to win close games. Highlands slots in at #4 after a tough week, falling to Conner and Lloyd but rebounding to beat #6 Holy Cross. #5 Beechwood was able to win a few close road games against #10 New Cath, #11 St. Henry, and #12 Cooper, but will need to play better if they want to beat #6 Holy Cross and advance to the regional tournament. #6 Holy Cross continues to struggle with consistency as they were blown out by Cov Cath, got beat pretty good by Highlands, but got a good win against Walton. #7 Newport got big wins against #8 Conner and #9 Dixie by a combined two points, and competed well before falling short against a good Boyd County team. I was ready to move #8 Conner up in the rankings with their big win against Highlands, before they fell to Newport and Boyd County (though it was a close game). Tough week for #9 Dixie, who lost to Newport by 1, to Lloyd in overtime, and to Cov Cath by 18 in a game closer than expected. #10 New Cath came up just short against #5 Beechwood, as did #11 St. Henry, who beat #12 Cooper on a Caden Kunstek 3-pointer at the buzzer. What a way for Coach Sullivan to get a win in his first game against his old team! Congratulations to Holmes on their NKAC Conference Tournament Championship, beating Ludlow in the finals.

Tier 1: The Favorite

1.       Covington Catholic (25-1) [last week 1; preseason 1]

Another dominant week for the Colonels, blowing out Holy Cross, beating Dixie by 18, and Great Crossing by 16. Athens McGillis (23.1 ppg) continues to lead Cov Cath, while Braeden Myrick (18.1 ppg) and Donovan Bradshaw (12.4 ppg, 6.8 rpb) are also in double figures. The Blue Colonels close out their regular season schedule with two really tough road games against perennial Ohio power Moeller and (previously #1) KY state-ranked Madison Central.

Tues, 2/17 at Moeller (OH); Fri, 2/20 at Madison Central

 

Tier 2: Not Cov Cath

2.       Ryle (17-7) [last week 4; preseason 4]

Ryle continues to play great basketball beating up on two 10^th region teams (Campbell County and Brossart) and has now won 13 of 14 games. Ryle has been impressive since their slow start and right now are the #2 team in the region (though a significant gap with CCH). Holden Smith (17.2 ppg) averaged 20 ppg in their two wins, with AJ Davis (11.9 ppg) and Anthony Coppola (11.9 ppg) also contributing. Three road games this week to close out the season against Nicholas County, East Central (IN), and defending KY state champion Great Crossing.

Mon, 2/16 at Nicholas County; Tues, 2/17 at East Central (IN); Thurs, 2/1 at Great Crossing

3.       Lloyd (19-4) [last week 3; preseason 7]

Lloyd went 3-0 on the week, somehow pulling off a win at Highlands while outlasting Dixie in overtime. Senior Anthony Blaackar continues to put up monster numbers, scoring 38 points on 10 3-pointers in their blowout win against Cincinnati Trailblazers.  Blaackar is now averaging 25.1 ppg (while shooting 54.4% from 3FG).. The Juggs close their season out with a tough road game at Conner.

Thurs, 2/19 at Conner

4.       Highlands (22-4) [last week 2; preseason 3]

While Highlands doubled their season loss total with a last-minute loss to Lloyd and beat down at Conner, they salvaged their week with a convincing win against Holy Cross. Highlands has five in double figures including Finn Bouldin (12.0 ppg), Nathan Rickard (10.1 ppg), Owen Ebert (11.7 ppg), Vincent Listerman (10.1 ppg), and Tayden Lorenzen (13.4 ppg). Highlands closes out their regular season with two tough road games at Simon Kenton and at Beechwood.

Tues, 2/17 at Simon Kenton; Thurs, 2/19 at Beechwood

5.       Beechwood (20-7) [last week 5; preseason 8]

Beechwood picked up three wins this week against #10-12 teams in the region. Topmiller (20.4 ppg) was held to 7 points against St. Henry but scored 32 (on 8 3-pointers) and 26 against New Cath and Cooper. The Tigers conclude their season with a tough road game at Newport and a home matchup against Highlands.

Mon, 2/16 at Newport; Thurs, 2/19 Highlands at Beechwood

6.       Holy Cross (18-8) [last week 6; preseason 2]

This week Holy Cross got blown out by Cov Cath, beat up on Walton Verona, and then got beat by double figures by Highlands. Luke Arlinghaus (17.3 ppg) continues to lead Holy Cross in scoring, with Rominger (13.5 ppg) and Brady Gabbard (13.5 ppg). Holy Cross finishes out their regular season with a couple of home games against New Cath and St. Henry.

Tues, 2/17 New Cath at Holy Cross; Thurs, 2/19 St. Henry at Holy Cross

7.       Newport (17-8) [last week 8; preseason 9]

Newport had two thrilling 1-point wins (against Dixie and Conner) before falling to Boyd County on Saturday afternoon. Junior Amontae Lowe (21.6 ppg) continues to put up big numbers for the Wildcats. Three home games for the Wildcats as they close out their season against Beechwood, Villa, and Dayton.

Mon, 2/16 Beechwood at Newport; Tues, 2/17 Villa at Newport; Thurs, 2/19 Dayton at Newport

8.       Conner (12-10) [last week 7; preseason 5]

Conner got a good win against Highlands by 14, before falling to Newport by 1 and Boyd County in a close game.  Louden (24.1 ppg) had 35 against Highlands. Two tough home games to finish out their season with the Cougars welcoming Elder (OH) and Lloyd.

       Mon, 2/16 Elder (OH) at Conner; Thurs, 2/19 Lloyd at Conner

9.       Dixie Heights (16-9) [last week 9; preseason 6]

Dixie went 0-3 on the week, losing two close home games against Lloyd and Newport and losing by 18 to Cov Cath. No stats reported for games two games this week. Dixie is led by Max Rubemeyer (15.7 ppg) and Tyson Metzger (12.1 ppg). The Red Colonels close out their season with three home games against Tates Creek, Cooper, and Bluegrass United.

Mon, 2/16 Newport at Dixie; Tues, 2/17 Cooper at Dixie; Fri, 2/20 Bluegrass United at Dixie

10.   Newport Catholic (10-16) [last week 11; preseason 13]

NewCath beat Boone and Dayton this week while also losing a close one to Beechwood.  John Luhn (14.4 ppg) continues to lead the Breds. Three games again this week for the Breds as they close out their season with Holy Cross and Ludlow on the road and rival Bishop Brossart at home.

Tues, 2/17 at Holy Cross; Wed, 2/18 at Ludlow; Fri, 2/20 Brossart at Newport Catholic

11.   St. Henry (12-14) [last week 12; preseason 10]

The Crusaders lost to Beechwood and South Oldham but also won a thrilling game against Cooper on a last second 3-pointer by senior Caden Kunstek.  The Crusaders are led by sophomore Tyler Detzel (10.4 ppg) and senior Caden Kunstak (8.4 ppg). St. Henry concludes their season with tough road games at Campbell County and at Holy Cross.  

Tues, 2/17 at Campbell; Thurs, 2/19 at Holy Cross

12.   Cooper (3-20) [last week 10; preseason 11]

Cooper went 0-2 on the week, a heartbreaking loss at St. Henry and 17-point loss to Beechwood on senior night. The Jaguars are led by Julian Knuckles (12.3 ppg), who scored 21 in the loss to Beechwood. Cooper has two games to finish out their season, a road matchup with Dixie and a home game against Holmes.

Tues, 2/17 at Dixie; Wed, 2/18 Holmes at Cooper 

 

The Rest

13.   Holmes (12-14)

Bulldogs went 3-0 this week, beating Williamstown, Bellevue, and Ludlow to win the NKAC Tournament Championship. The Bulldogs finish regular season with a road game at Cooper and home game against Harrison County.

14.   Boone Co (6-21)

The Rebels went 0-3 on the week, losing to New Cath, Pendleton County, and Portland Christian. The Rebels conclude their season with games against Gallatin County and Dayton.

15.   Ludlow (12-14)

Ludlow went 2-1 on the week, beating Villa and Heritage before falling to Holmes in the NKAC Tournament Championship. The Panthers have three games to finish out their regular season – Williamstown, New Cath, and Augusta.

16.   Bellevue (8-15)

The Tigers went 1-2 this week, beating rival Dayton before falling to Holmes in the NKAC Tournament. Bellevue concludes their season with home games against Bracken County and Brossart.

17.   Dayton (16-9)

The Greendevils went 2-3, losing to rival Bellevue and New Cath and beating Cov Latin and Robertson County. Tough final week for the Greendevils with games against Boone County and Newport.

18.   Villa Madonna (4-22)

Villa went 0-3 on the week. Last three regular season games for the Vikings include Newport, Robertson County, and Heritage.

19.   Heritage (6-19)

Heritage upset Calvary Christian before falling to Ludlow by 2 in the NKAC Tournament. The Eagles finish out their season with games against Brown (Louisville), Villa, and Landmark Christian (OH).

Moe should be a good test for CovCath. The Crusaders aren’t going to let Colonels get as many possessions in this game as they are used to getting.

Don't take this out of proportion. I gave it to this guy hard. I pretty much berated him all offseason. I doubted him and them. Although I knew they had something in the 'Th Port, I didn't think they could succumb what they had lost. Snapp is by far my coach of the year in the 9th. He has shown the ability to overcome what 99% of his peers would never be able to dream of.

Conner gets my biggest regular season " ? " of the year. Who are they? How do they close out the meaningless regular season? A win over Lloyd, they already did dat. A loss and what's that mean? It's not the prettiest road to glory but they definitely don't care as long as they get to go for a jump ball when March comes.