I just dont see this class being as strong as some of you all are saying. I think Indiana has a even bigger advantage this year than last, and it would be a big upset if we can win one of the games. Indiana will have a hand full of Major D-1 players, Ky proabley doesnt have a player ranked in the top 200! Hope I am wrong.

I just dont see this class being as strong as some of you all are saying. I think Indiana has a even bigger advantage this year than last, and it would be a big upset if we can win one of the games. Indiana will have a hand full of Major D-1 players, Ky proabley doesnt have a player ranked in the top 200! Hope I am wrong.

 

This team should be much better than last year's team especially considering Richie Phares was injured and couldn't play and took out by far the best interior player fo Kentucky.

 

This year's senior class isn't great at the top as far as having big stars, but there are so many good players in this class. The depth of this class is impressive IMO, but don't have any superstars really.

I just dont see this class being as strong as some of you all are saying. I think Indiana has a even bigger advantage this year than last, and it would be a big upset if we can win one of the games. Indiana will have a hand full of Major D-1 players, Ky proabley doesnt have a player ranked in the top 200! Hope I am wrong.

 

 

That perception has changed since last year then. Two years ago, the 2009 class was perceived to be a fall-off, but 2010 was expected to be strong. I wouldn't agree with the fall-off so much, but dial back a year, and there were a number of 2010's that were very highly considered....many of them name here. Has their stock dropped that much? eg. many "consensus" D-1's...Johnson, Pittman, Guynn, Jackson, Euton, Justice, Sewell among a number of other players who I either missed or can be mentioned at the same level.

Kentucky doesn't take their best players and that is a big reason why Indiana dominates this series. I watched the entire try-out last year and there were three guards from Louisville that were clearly among the best players there, yet none of the three made the team. Apparently they had too much flash in their game and the coaches wanted something else. After what I saw last year firsthand, I question why we even hold try-outs. Players made the Kentucky squad that had a bad two day workout, so what that told me was most of the roster was already decided before try-outs were even held. Instead of wasting all the time, money, travel, etc. on biased try-outs, just let the coach of the year from each region, head coach of the KY team for the upcoming summer, and statewide media get together during the state tournament, throw some names around, and announce their selections. In the end it would be a lot better system than what I saw during try-outs last year.

Kentucky doesn't take their best players and that is a big reason why Indiana dominates this series. I watched the entire try-out last year and there were three guards from Louisville that were clearly among the best players there, yet none of the three made the team. Apparently they had too much flash in their game and the coaches wanted something else. After what I saw last year firsthand, I question why we even hold try-outs. Players made the Kentucky squad that had a bad two day workout, so what that told me was most of the roster was already decided before try-outs were even held. Instead of wasting all the time, money, travel, etc. on biased try-outs, just let the coach of the year from each region, head coach of the KY team for the upcoming summer, and statewide media get together during the state tournament, throw some names around, and announce their selections. In the end it would be a lot better system than what I saw during try-outs last year.

 

 

Part of that maybe not having the best coach to oversee the team. Who is coaching the team this year? Really, you rarely see the best big named coaches coaching in the game. I'm not knocking the coaches they have had recently, but I don't think any of those guys would be considered the best of the best of Kentucky coaches.

This team should be much better than last year's team especially considering Richie Phares was injured and couldn't play and took out by far the best interior player fo Kentucky.

 

This year's senior class isn't great at the top as far as having big stars, but there are so many good players in this class. The depth of this class is impressive IMO, but don't have any superstars really.

 

Phares was the top interior player AND the loss of Jenkins on the perimeter who in fact lit up the seniors during the KY junior vs senior series. Colt Ryan for Indiana blistered the KY on the wings. No, there's no gaurantees, but the success Jenkins had on Indiana Elite which was featured by Ryan, Van Treese, and Byrd would have made the perimeter stronger as would Phares down low.

 

As some of the other sentiments on this thread are saying, Kentucky has to select the best players to be competitive. We are a state loaded with solid guard play, but we are also a stated loaded with 6'3 forwards. Its tough when you don't have a strong pool and can find a tough front-court with enough height to battle in the middle.

How about Colt Barnhill (6'7") from East Carter.

Part of that maybe not having the best coach to oversee the team. Who is coaching the team this year? Really, you rarely see the best big named coaches coaching in the game. I'm not knocking the coaches they have had recently, but I don't think any of those guys would be considered the best of the best of Kentucky coaches.

Tony Hopper, who coached last year's team, is one of the state's best coaches.

Tony Hopper, who coached last year's team, is one of the state's best coaches.

 

We agree there. I'm not sure, but doesn't Indiana have something set up for their all-stars to play together or practice more than ours? I know several of their players last year had played together for years on the Indy Elite AAU teams.

Tony Hopper, who coached last year's team, is one of the state's best coaches.

 

No disrespect to him, but I'd say most people understand what I'm saying. You never see coaches like Dave Henley, Steve Wright, Billy Hicks, Tim Riley, Chris Renner, Chris O'hearn, Wayne Breeden, Al Holland, and Jason Booher coaching the team. (Atleast I don't think none of those guys have coached the team).

No disrespect to him, but I'd say most people understand what I'm saying. You never see coaches like Dave Henley, Steve Wright, Billy Hicks, Tim Riley, Chris Renner, Chris O'hearn, Wayne Breeden, Al Holland, and Jason Booher coaching the team. (Atleast I don't think none of those guys have coached the team).

I think Wright and Riley have ...

Tony Hopper, who coached last year's team, is one of the state's best coaches.

 

That may very well be the case, but he didn't pick the team last year that gave him the best chance to win against Indiana. If you had been at try-outs I think you would agree with me. A lot of people were left shaking their heads when the roster was announced.

That may very well be the case, but he didn't pick the team last year that gave him the best chance to win against Indiana. If you had been at try-outs I think you would agree with me. A lot of people were left shaking their heads when the roster was announced.

Really? Who should have made the team? Which team would have given Kentucky, already down two guys that would have been on the team, the best chance to win?

Really? Who should have made the team? Which team would have given Kentucky, already down two guys that would have been on the team, the best chance to win?

 

Indiana had a huge height advantage last year no matter who KY suited up, so why not take a quick team and hopefully make their big guys run on a college length floor that they weren't used to playing on. As it was, KY took more of a half-court team minus the best two guards at the try-out in Mosley and Sloan from Louisville, not to mention Cox from Louisville was also very good. Kentucky ended up being not only smaller, but also slower than Indiana and had no shot at winning either game. How in the world you can pick the KY All-Stars without any 7th Region players is beyond me. Mosley averaged 27 ppg on a good Moore team and hung 40-50 on several top 20 teams in the state, yet that can't get you on the KY All-Stars in a year where our talent was way down? I saw what he did at try-outs and there was no way you could keep him off that team unless you had some sort of agenda - like picking a player off your own team.

Indiana had a huge height advantage last year no matter who KY suited up, so why not take a quick team and hopefully make their big guys run on a college length floor that they weren't used to playing on. As it was, KY took more of a half-court team minus the best two guards at the try-out in Mosley and Sloan from Louisville, not to mention Cox from Louisville was also very good. Kentucky ended up being not only smaller, but also slower than Indiana and had no shot at winning either game. How in the world you can pick the KY All-Stars without any 7th Region players is beyond me. Mosley averaged 27 ppg on a good Moore team and hung 40-50 on several top 20 teams in the state, yet that can't get you on the KY All-Stars in a year where our talent was way down? I saw what he did at try-outs and there was no way you could keep him off that team unless you had some sort of agenda - like picking a player off your own team.

 

Pick those three players who are 5'9 and 5'10 and then enter a 6' and under tourney with a 15 second shot clock. Indiana was not that slow by the way.