The Observer

Lexington Catholic's John Maronde is selected in the 43rd round by Oakland. Congrats to John. :thumb:

Boone County's Cory Farris is selected in the 43rd round by the Chicago White Sox. Congrats Cory though I hope to see you playing for UK next season. :thumb:

Can't wait !! It will be nice to get to the bottom of this and see once and for all who has the best information. :sssh:

I enjoyed seeing many of Arrez's games this year. He has a load of talent and got after it on the defensive end like I have never seen. Once again, great job Arrez !! :ylsuper:

Best Performance- Corey Sorrell's 37 point night against Covington Catholic. Its is very impressive when everyone in the building knows who the ball is going to and that person can still score at will. Coach of the Year- Dave Faust or Dave Henley, both have done amazing jobs Most Underrated- Erik Thomas of Conner Most Surprising Player- Todd Khroman of Boone Co. Player of the Year- Arrez Henderson Best Defender- Arrez Henderson Mr. Hustle- Stephan Love of Villa

I love the fact these games are on TV. Instead of dragging the wife out, I can put some popcorn in the mircowave and watch from home.

Shumate also coached his team to beat Conner, Holy Cross, South Oldham, and a Raceland team that is making some noise in the 16th. The only bad losses on the year came at the hands of Holmes and Highlands. Although many of their wins came against DIII teams, they cannot help who is automatically on their schedule. They went 14-0 in conference, what more do you want from him? :confused:

I think the region would make more money by advertising the Holmes/Bellevue game as "The Holmes 2008 Dunk Contest" than they would as is.

Winners: St. Henry and Holmes Losers: Dixie/Conner, Highlands/Cov. Cath. As for Bellevue and Villa, I'll tip my hat and wish you all the best of luck !!

Oh yeah, forgot to mention that it was not a very smart move by Beechwood to move the game to Holmes. Next time, take any advantage you have. I'd much rather see a huge victory than a large money sum for the gate.

Love has had a great year for the Blue Lightning. That being said, I kind of scratch my head as to why Alex Hall did not win POY honors. He did play for an undefeated basketball team that won the conference. The last game I attended between the two schools, he outplayed Love in my opinion. I also think Brian was the best player on Villa's team, but acknowledge the award usually goes to a senior. Why not award the senior whose team dominated the conference by 3 wins?? Congrats to all the players named to All-Conference teams. Arrez Henderson and Corey Sorrell were a pleasure to watch play this year. Congrats also to Love from Villa. I hope I see basketball in the future for all 3 players.

I see Dixie by 11. Mace is just too tough for the Juggs. The one time I saw Dixie this year they did a good job of feeding him the basketball. While Lloyd has been playing better, I feel it's Dixie's game to lose.

Congrats to Villa Madonna. Love is a great player and from what I hear, a great kid. I was suprised to see how close it was, but it is a win none the less.

I will never understand how a school the size of St. X cannot put out a basketball team that competes year in and year out.

I attended the first Beechwood/Holmes game with the hope the Tigers would put up a fight. Needless to say, I came away disappointed. That being said, the Tigers did not play very good basketball while I felt Holmes shot the ball well. I have attended numerous games for both teams this year and that was the worst I have seen Beechwood play, and one of the best games I have seen from Holmes. Romas did not play the last time if I remember correctly, but that does not make a 30 point difference. I see Beechwood hanging tough with the Bulldogs for a couple of quarters but eventually the best team will win. I'll take the Holmes by 16. Henderson and company play with an intensity the Tigers do not. While Romas may contain Henderson better than most, the fact is Holmes is deeper and more talented. With that being said, I will be pulling for the upset. I have attended more games for Beechwood this year than I ever expected. They are truly a fun team to watch. I also enjoy attending the Holmes games. Defensive intensity topped off with a few nice dunks every game. I hope to see a close one !!

Both teams seem to be playing their best basketball right now. That being said, I'll take the Camels on senior night. I think this game is decided in the 4th quarter.

If he is even able to play at 90% it would dramatically change the way everything plays out in the region. He does not have to be at 100% to make an impact. This could be the breath of fresh air the bluebirds need.

Is the vote before or after the Sweet 16?

I agree that all 3 are great players but what is the deal with McGraw's back? Will it prevent him from playing at the next level? He is an amazing talent and I'd hate to see him give up the game.

I'm willing to predict the 33rd will not play out like it is expected to.

1st Region-Paducah Tilghman 2nd Region-University Heights 3rd Region-Owensboro 4th Region-Franklin-Simpson 5th Region-Adair County 6th Region-DeSales 7th Region-Male 8th Region-Shelby Co. 9th Region-Holmes 10th Region-Mason County 11th Region-Lexington Catholic 12th Region-McCreary Central 13th Region-Corbin 14th Region-Hazard 15th Region-Shelby Valley 16th Region-Rose Hill 1st Tiebreaker-8th

While I wasn't at the game, I'd say most wins are not handed out. When a team is down 15 at half time and battles back, credit must be given for the amount of heart shown. It sounds like Villa made mistakes and did not have some calls go their way, but clearly Beechwood earned it. Whatever was said at halftime must have inspired Hall because he came out firing. Having seen Villa in the past, I know they are not a very deep team. Having foul trouble made them rely on their bench and Beechwood's athleticism is outstanding for a DIII school.:thumb:

Having seen Conner play twice this year, they have little to no chance against the Bulldogs. The guard play from Conner struggles against defensive pressure on the ball. Holmes will create and score off turnovers at ease. I'll take the Bulldogs by 28. Then again, I did predict them beating NCC by about the same number.

Another good win for the 9th region. Boone County has the ability to go far into the regional tournament. In my opinion, McFarland makes this team go. When he is having an off night, they seem to struggle.

1) Holmes 2) Boone Co. 3) Dixie 4) Highlands 5) Covington Catholic