With less than one full month until district tourney play opens, who is REALLY the boss in the 8th Region - if their is one? Are the Lady Bearcats of Anderson Co. really in command, with all others simply vying for the runner-up spot? What about it? Are W-V, South Oldham, Owen Co. really just pretenders and not contenters, or is this bad-boy another wide-open affair, as it was last year? However, one thing is certain: the town of Warsaw and the Gallatin Co. High School gym will be really busy places come the region tournament!

Anderson has 14 in a row against the 8th...gotta go with them until they lose a game.

Was it Simon Kenton that gave them their last loss?

Anderson has 14 in a row against the 8th...gotta go with them until they lose a game.

Yes, 2 years ago in the regional finals.

Edited January 21, 201115 yr by gold sunrise
Rule #13

Based on win/loss records seems about the same as when the season begin. Anderson, because they are defending region champ with no regional losses still have to be a slight favorite. For sure S. Oldham, WV, Owen, SK, Collins could all very well win the region...maybe others. The next three weeks will shed a little light on the picture, at least for us fans, but irregardless of what happens in the season it will still come down to who plays best at the right time....always does. In the 8th this year several teams have a chance. Fun time for bball!!!!

Anderson, South Oldham, and Walton Verona are contenders. Everyone else is second tier or below. Collins and Owen do not belong in top tier.

Big games coming up...

 

Walton-Verona hosts South.... 1/22/11

 

South travels to Owen County... 1/24/11

 

South hosts Anderson County... 1/28/11

 

Anderson remains the heavy favorite. They return nearly everyone from last year's 8th region champs...they are older, stronger, wiser. They are one of three teams undefeated this year vs. 8th region teams. I've seen them twice, and they've looked uneven at times, but they are tremendously talented and are honing themselves against a brutal schedule.

 

Everyone else has questions to answer:

 

South Oldham is undefeated vs. region competition and is also playing a tough schedule. Even their pre-season was brutal, when they scrimmaged Boone County. South's half-court trapping defense is as good as I've ever seen, and Jasmine Whitfield is making a strong case for POY honors, leading the team in scoring (21 ppg), shooting (nearly 50%), threes, and steals (4.5 / game), while #2 in rebounding (nearly 7 / game). But South sometimes struggles offensively in the half-court, which has gotten them out of the region tourney the last two years. South's next 3 games will tell a lot...on the road at W-V, on the road at Owen, home vs. Anderson.

 

Walton-Verona was in the finals last year, and presents one of the most formidable inside games in the region, plus some solid outside shooters. Ballhandling was an issue last year, and it remains to be seen if the Lady Cats have improved enough in that area. In their first major test against an up-and-down team, W-V was beat by SK, 63-50.

 

Simon Kenton is the only other team (besides Anderson and South) that is undefeated in region play, and last year's POY Sydni Wainscott is having a banner senior season, averaging 21 ppg. But SK has two statistics that don't go well together - they're shooting just 33% from the floor, but only averaging about 17 rebounds a game. In fact, Wainscott - a guard - leads the team in rebounding at 3.2 per contest.

 

Owen has tremendous shooters on the outside...Rianna Gayheart, may well be the best shooter in the region, and she now has a running mate in the backcourt in Hannah Neeley who is helping to keep the defenses from collapsing only on her. But Owen's struggled to beat the "big 4", going 1-6 vs. South / Anderson / SK / W-V over the last year and a half. This year's loss to Williamstown in the All-A was a puzzler, but funny things happen in tournaments. If Gayheart and Neeley both get hot at the same time come tournament time, Owen will be a force, but they'll probably need more scoring on the inside in order to win three straight.

Anderson, South Oldham, and Walton Verona are contenders. Everyone else is second tier or below. Collins and Owen do not belong in top tier.

 

Simon would have to be considered top tier, I believe they beat WV handily earlier this season.

Simon would have to be considered top tier' date=' I believe they beat WV handily earlier this season.[/quote']SK can be considered a contender. Just baffled at the willingness of folks to put Owen and Collins in that group.

Anderson is the clear cut favorite until someone proves they can beat them, remember you have to win 3 tough games in a row and the others show alot of incosistency compared to Anderson. Really think that they are 4-5 teams that can beat each other any night but being inconsistent does not win you regions just games in the regular season.

I think Anderson is the favorite and will probably win the 8th region. I think that SO is the ony team that might give them problems. However, there are mamy teams in the 8th that can have a very good night and beat a team they should not.

I think that of the top 5-6 teams, anyone can beat anyone on a given night. That being said, who has the tools to win three in a row? I think the next month should prove to help. However, Anderson was NOT considered one of the top 3 (SK, Walton, South) at this point last season. So, it could all come down to who gets hot. I think this will be an exciting regional tourney.

Anderson is starting 3 freshmen and an eighth grader...still not seasoned veterans and they have been "tinkering" with the point guard rotation buying a little time at this spot so that is part of the inconsistency. I think they will have it ironed out by tournament time. Shhh. just don't tell the girls they are still young, they don't know!

SK can be considered a contender. Just baffled at the willingness of folks to put Owen and Collins in that group.

 

Have to agree, FBD.

Anderson is very talented and well coached, they are the team to beat no matter what their ages are. They are also very athletic this causes many problems for opponents.