Lion Mania

AC is 19-4 with close losses to Elliott, Scott County, J-Town, and Bullitt East. I think they are right where they belong at #10. One other note on the EC-Anderson game which there is the possiblity that the two could play again. AC out shoot EC 50% to 36.5% and out rebounded them 46-27. Russell and Penny are among the leaders in the state in rebounding and CJ Penny is a load to handle. I look for the re-match to happen.

Seems after watching Ferg shoot hundreds of shots, that he has a higher percentage when he is challenged the most and has to fall away, double pump, has several people running at him on a long three, etc. Less pressure and the wide open shots sometimes seem to give him the hardest time. I guess he has to concentrate more on those difficult shots and thus the ball going in. Also he seems better a step or two or three behind the three point line than right up on the three point line. The latter may be too easy a shot for him.

I have seen GRC several times and Ballard several times including the Elliott win over Ballard. Ballard is very talented and very good. Jones, Cox, & Chiles are top flight athletes that can run, jump, and shoot. Ballard is on their home court. I like Ballard to win this one 78-68.

Certainly don't understand how Lexington Catholic is ranked above Elliott?? They have lost 7 games and the Mason game went into overtime. We handled Mason by double figures. Our two losses haven't exactly been to Bugtusle HS and Possum Trot HS. Must be the name and tradition. Elliott doesn't have those two on its side. Debated to even post. Rankings are somewhat like playing the lottery. Really don't care if Elliott is ranked #15 because they have to play them out on the floor one by one. One way to look at it is the lower the ranking the smaller the bullseye.

If not for Ethan Faulkner's 1st quarter ending trey Elliott scores only 4 points in the first 8 minutes of the game vs. Shelby Valley. In watching this team over 35 games the last 2 years I have never seen them play a quarter like that. It was absolutely shocking and they were sleep walking. Did SV's defense have something to do with it?? Sure it did. Did EC being in a fog have something to do with it?? Yes That was the absolute worst 8 minutes that Elliott did or can ever play. The odds of them having that kind of quarter again are off the charts IMO. May sound like excuses, but having seen them play so much basketball it is clear facts that they would have trailed about half the 16th region teams after playing what was the worst 8 minutes of basketball from them I ever witnessed. Even stunk it up worse than the Cedar Hill game!!! May have opened a can of worms, but that is honestly what transpired.

Everyone knows that Jonathan is one of the most prolific scorer's in the state, but maybe knows very little about Shae (his sister) and Kelsey (their cousin). Shae and Kelsey are two excellent basketball players who can play college ball. Shae is a senior, but Kelsey is just a junior. Shae can shoot the trey ball much like Jonathan with amazing accuracy. She had 9 treys and 35 points in the OT win over GRC. Kelsey is a jet quick point guard who finds ways to score both inside and out and is an excellent passer and can handle the rock. Much like the boys these girls can really shoot the long ball. Lakin Griffith and the Ison girl can drill the long ball also. These girls have a chance to win 20 games this year and advance deep into the region tournament at Morehead and to me are a legitimate threat to win the region. At 16-8 they have now won 7 straight games and are 13-2 in the region and 6-0 in the district. GO LADY LIONS!!!

Great article and well said BLT.:ylsuper: I can see Coach Faulkner returning some day and leading another group of young lions to the big dance in Lexington. Ethan and/or Evan either one. Heck, Ethan is like a coach on the floor now. His leadership and positive can do attitude is always on display, he is a great role model, and his basketball IQ is off the charts. No point guard in the state is going to out think this guy on the court. Plus they both play with the heart and soul of a roaring lion coming at you. These seniors are the most competetive and determined bunch I have seen. Throw a tall talented and gifted sophomore in there and you have just the right mix.

Yes, end of statement.

I think you will see the starters only playing about 16 minutes in this game. The only reason I even say that much is remember they don't have another game for 7 days until the district. Much like the regional to state. If you win the region on Tuesday night you don't play in Rupp until 9 days later on a Thursday night. Rest is good, but 7-9 days and these guys get real itchy to play a game against anybody.

Way to go Lady Lions!!! Already set a record for most wins for an Elliott County Girl's team and now going for a 20 win season. Sounds like EC Girl's trounced what some thought was the 2d best team in the 16th region. Any stats?? I bet the Ferguson girl's and Lakin had big games?? I believe this game moves their record to 16-8 and they have not lost a game since the loss to Green County in Richmond at the All A State Tournament. SOME KIND OF YEAR FOR ELLIOTT COUNTY BASKETBALL WITH SUCCESS FROM BOTH THE BOY'S AND GIRL'S THIS SEASON!!!

Anderson is playing great ball with a record now of 19-4. Penny and Russell average 21 rpg and are among the leaders in the state in rebounding. The tandem are also very good scorers. But, last year they were undefeated in the region in regular season and then lost to Gallatin Co. in the 1st round of the region. They haven't been to the state since 1997, although they have been favored several of those last 12 years. I think they get over the hump this year and win the 8th region setting up an interesting re-match possibly with Elliott County on Thursday night in Rupp.

Thanks for the healthy congrads and kind words, but we still have to play them one by one just like everybody else. Yes, the 16th region is relatively weak, but there are a few teams that are saying give us one more final shot at them. Nothing sure but death and taxes. But we would have to stink the building up pretty bad and they have to play the game of the year and shoot lights out. After watching them (Elliott) the last three games though I must admit they don't look like they are in the stink the building up groove right now. But, it just takes one game for all that to change. Let's play them one by one and see what happens.............................

1, 2, and 4 should be hung from the rafters in the gym never to be worn again. They need to be big jerseys with their names and numbers on them that can be readily seen when one walks into the gym and immediately catches your eye. I think it should have a special ceremony where they are raised to their permanent location. Sounds like a lot of big hoopla. Well 7,000 points by these three rates a special kind of big hoopla!!! Let's start a campaign and make it happen. GET R DUN as the Cable Guy would say.

Thanks Eta and glad we have won you over. What one must remember though is that things can change very quickly. I remember several games we stunk the building up. But, of course some other top teams have had their bad games also. Here's hoping the top teams of Scott County, Holmes, Shelby Valley, and whoever comes out of the 7th (IMO Ballard) bring their A game because the fans will be in for some kind of show next month in Rupp and some great basketball like we saw last night. If the top teams get to Rupp there will be some talent on the floor for sure and the Greatest Show in Hoops will be on display in its best. Good luck to Holmes and here's hoping we both get to Saturday morning for a fantastic game that will have the fan's buzzing.

1. Scott County 2. Eastern 3. Holmes 4. Elliott Co./Shelby Valley 5. Ballard I believe that any of these teams could win the state championship and that one of them will indeed do just that.

Watching the warm-ups Ballard put on a dunking exhibition and won the warm-ups in a landslide. Somebody who watches the warm-ups against a team like Ballard, Holmes, Scott County, or Shelby Valley and you think these guys are going to get creamed. Take Timmy Knipp out and they are just a bunch of 6'1" guards. In their case though looks are very deceiving. But they know how to play the game and play together. They get rebounds maybe they shouldn't get. They drive to the basket and score on people they maybe shouldn't score over. They shoot fall aways and off balance double pump shots because they sometimes have to and the ball goes in with amazing accuracy. They play the game the way it should be played and defy all the odds. Of course it helps when you have five guys who can drill them from anywhere on the court and shooting and scoring is why they keep the score. But they also can rebound, pass, defend all over and just really get on your nerves before the night is over. Joe B. has seen some basketball in 80 years and he knows teams when he sees one. They will go down as one of the all time most fun teams to watch regardless of what happens in March.

First let me not just beat my chest about how great Elliott is, but also give some good things about Ballard. This was a heck of a game and Elliott played one of their best games of the year. Had to against this quality of a team. Ballard is not as big as Mason, Shelby, Holmes, or Scott County, but they have the athletes. They were putting on an impressive dunking exhibition in warm-ups including Keisten Jones who can fly off the floor. Cox and Chiles can shoot the rock and are super quick, but I felt the Faulkners did a great job on them. Ferg was hitting all kinds of fall away double pump shots that found the bottom of the net and then in the second half starting lighting it up from downtown. Timmy Knipp played big inside with some big blocks, but had a hard time with Keisten Jones who is only 6'4" but is a quick leaper who can turn and dunk on you before you know what happened. I have not seen Eastern, but I have seen J-Town twice and I believe Ballard is the better team and will come out of the 7th. Congrads to Ferg on a big time night with 35 points and for breaking the 51 year old 16th Region scoring record. Congrads to Evan for reaching 2,000 points. 7,000 points by three players is an incredible career for the F Troop. These three may not jump the highest, be the quickest, win a slam dunk competetion, or anything else for that matter. But when it comes to winning and flat out playing the game I will take them against anybody!!! One thing they do well and that is play with intensity, passion, mental toughness, and an all out will to win and they are a pleasure to watch. Never underestimate the sheer determination that these three possess!!! Thanks for an incredible ride and please keep it going so we can have some fun just a little longer.

Score or margin doesn't make me nervous. What makes me nervous is the fact that Elliott County has won 21 straight district games and 8 straight wins over East Carter. And to add to those goosebumbs the last loss was on December 19th, 2006 by a score of 57-58 to who?? East Carter:scared: One thing in Elliott's favor--East has always played them tougher at Sandy Hook than Grayson for some strange reason. District is at East in Grayson.:idunno:

Yes--Fleming was very physical with some take downs, hard fouls, and several elbows. Actually Fleming has some talent, but don't seem to get the mileage out of it. Very poor record at 9-14 and look like a much better team than that. Ferg's technical was on a drive to the hoop where he powered it in. Yes he showed some emotion because he got gang tackled the play before and no call was made. Evan has been on fire from three point range the last few games and is just drilling them. Timmy did have 2 big monster dunks. One on a alley oop pass and the other one he drove the baseline and just rared back and slammed it hard. Timmy also was shooting well from beyond the arc. EC moves to 23-2 and 15-0 in the region. Ballard along with the television crews roll into Sandy Hook Saturday evening. Should be an intense and state tournament atmosphere game with a packed house on hand. As the ring announcer would say, "Let's get ready to rumble".

EC by way more than enough. Highlight of the night is the senior's getting recognized and one special 51 year old record possibly being broken tonight by one special individual. Nothing special about the final score I'm sure.

Ballard winning by double digits in Sandy Hook. Only if Elliott shoots about 30% from the field and 15% from trey land which doesn't happen very often in Sandy Hook (probably never in the last few years). Even with a bad shooting game Ballard would only win by single digits.

Not making a prediction. If Elliott plays like they did the last 3 quarters against Mason they should be fine and come away with a victory. If they shoot (for the sake of offending someone) or Ballard's lock down defense causes them to shoot like Cedar Hill/Shelby Valley then we will probably see a 5-10 point Ballard win. I will say this, Ballard (like Bryan Station) is closer to Elliott's style with offense centered around their guards (Cox and Chiles) and not quite as big as the Shelby Valley's, Holmes, Mason's, and Scott County's of the world. I saw Holmes beat Ballard by 5 in the Bryan Station Defender Classic and also against another team in that classic. Jones at 6'4" (I believe) was the biggest and most consistent inside threat, but most of their offense centered around the perimeter and Cox and Chiles. Really don't remember too much about their inside game (only Jones) because of their guard play. Should be a good matchup with the Faulkner's who will be like pesty little bee's and sticking to them like glue from end to end.

Those Ferguson girls (Shae and Kelsey) are very good and Lakin Griffith has been putting up big numbers as of late. They have put together a great year against a very tough schedule that included a win over Scott County. Congrats to the Lady Lions on a super season and hoping for a deep run in post season!!!

Congrats to ET as I like to call him. I have seen them all (PGs in the state) and you are #1 in my book my friend. Great leadership from this young man who is like a coach on the floor. Great desire and gives 110% at all times. Plays the game the way it was meant to be played (just ask Joe B.). I have enjoyed watching him play and hope to enjoy it a while longer. NKU got one heck of a player!!!

Slow start for the Lions, but they picked it up in the 2d quarter. Ferg honored before the home fans before the game with the announcement of him joining an elite group in the 3,000 point club. What a big accomplishment for this young man from Isonville. Ferg I salute you and the whole county is proud of your accomplishment. Everyone was proud of him, but none glowed like the parents and grandparents and the look I saw on their faces. Then he proceeded to put up 30 points taking the ball to the rack with a vengenance and scoring over some tall timber at the rack. Also some beautiful spin moves and then his patent fall away jumper that tickles the twine. As Joe Dean would say a little string music in Sandy Hook KY. Twins were constant motion as always and causing chaos for the raiders all over the court. Don't bring the ball down because if you do they are like magicians swiping it away and heading the other direction before you know what hit you. Let the ride continue. NEXT UP: The Mason Royals venture into the Lion's Den!!!