HSBallFan78

Yes, my Nephew is from Mason County. He too said he is tired of Orange TN #5 jerseys at the games. Wish Lofton would have ended up at UK too.

Yes, the one delayed foul call on Holmes last night was pretty bad. But I think sometimes the refs wait to see if the shot goes in before they call a foul. Not saying I agree, but seems to be what happens. Either that, or they have defective whistles! Anyway, I didn't see anything too biased one way or another in the championship games. Lots of physical play on both sides. I saw Holmes guys get hit on shots and also Mason. I don't think the refs made any difference in the game.

Congrats to Mason County. Great Season. Can't wait to see Darius in UK Blue next year ! Go Cats!

Definitely Scott County is one of the fastest (if not the fastest) growing Counties in the State. It is definitely due to Toyota and the secondary economy that has grown up around them. Cost of living is much lower than Fayette, but you have many of the same benefits. And you are close enough to Lexington, Cincinnati or Louisville if you want something more. The fact is that 2 highly rated HS players have transferred into Scott County in less than one year. And a third may not be far behind. I am sure the KHSAA will be involved, because they will have to determine Euton's and possibly Jackson's eligibility. Having said that, I personally don't see any issue with Euton. It looks totally legit. His dad lost his job, so gotta move somewhere. The fact that they wanted to get Dakota into a good basketball program was one of their decisions on where to move to. His dad said as much in the articles we have read. Skews the balance of power in their district and the 11th region, but that is life I guess.

LogMountainBoy - if Dunbar had as much talent as the other schools like Scott County, Station, or Catholic, why weren't there players rated pre-season as high? I bet many on this board could name at least one player on Scott, Station or Catholic. How many could name the Dunbar players? I follow the sport, and watched them play in at least 4 games this year. I am having trouble remembering any of their players names. I could name Guyn, Phares, Hundley, Mack, Burdette, Combs, Novasel, Stewart, Sanford, Smart, Botkin, etc... Dunbar was definitely the surprise of the 11th region this year. Probably both boys and girls. You have got to have BOTH the talent and the coaching. A lot of hard work, and some luck along the way. This year, we had a lot of really really good teams. Many of them in the 11th region. But the finals were a 9th vs 10th championship.

I hope the KHSAA and the game refs didn't get together and "change the call" after the game to allow the "player we cannot name" to play. That would be pretty seedy! I hope it is just a rule interpretation that they debated. Again, I think we need to see how situations like this have been ruled on in the past. I was sitting in the Mason section for the Semi-final game. The fans immediately started discussing the possibility that "the un-nammed" player would be unable to play due to leaving the bench. Most of the Mason fans thought he was suspended until he came out to warm up in the finals. The un-named player came out about 5 minutes after the rest of the team hit the floor. So I am guessing that is when the KHSAA changed their opinion and allowed him to play.

I am guessing the game refs knew the impact of their decision if they ejected him immediately. From what I saw at the game, they seemed to huddle and discuss for a while. The Rupp Arena announcer said he was given a technical for leaving the bench.

It will be interesting to see how much pressure the KHSAA gets on this. Consistency of discipline is important in any activity. Knowing what has happened in previous situations is not only interesting but critical. I am not that familiar with the KHSAA specific rules on this, that is why I am asking. I know at the College and NBA levels, leaving the bench is a big no-no and is pretty much automatic suspension. If nothing else, the KHSAA needs to clarify the situation. I know they had a tough call to make last night and short amount of time to do it. Either way, they were going to get criticism. The players name we cannot use, definitely put his teams chances at a title at risk. Personally, I am happy Mason won. But it will be a decision that will be debated for years.

Since theGuru closed the previous thread and says we can't use the "name" of a certain player from Mason", I wanted to start another one to get my question answered. My previous question was can anyone show the excerpts from the KHSAA rule book regarding the action that this "un-named" player took in the semi-final game? I would like to see the specifics that they based their decision on.

BigBlueInsanity - I personally was rooting for Mason County, and they were definitely in the top 3 throughout the year. And they won the state championship! But whether they were "the best" team in the state will be up for debate. I would have loved to have seen them and Catholic in another game last night. Having watched both Mason and Catholic multiple times the last year, I would have given Catholic a slight nod going into the tournament. They seemed to improve a lot over this season. But Mason has Darius Miller and a fine set of complimentary players. When Mason had to have a basket, give it to Miller down low, and he could not be stopped. I am happy for Mason County. But the Setty suspension issue will continue to put a question mark on the Mason Title for many years to come. Too bad for the Mason County team. The KHSAA was in a tough situation last night. Either was, was going to create controversy for a long time.

Looks like Setty will become infamous in KHSAA Sweet "lore". Not sure if this was the kind of "press" he was looking for. BTW, does anyone have a link or excepts from the KHSAA rule book regarding leaving the bench?

Riverrat - You are right.... unfortunately for Mason, their title will always have an asterisk in front of it for most of the non-Mason fans. It's a shame. KHSAA needs to clarify their rules and stick to it. It is not OK to make and exception because it is "the biggest game of Setty's life" or because it is the championship game. Should Scott County or the KHSAA have let Mackey play this year? How many really good impact players were not on teams this year, because of grades or other issues? Should we make exceptions? I was rooting for Mason. But I am also about the rules. Again, this will be debated for a long time.

Ligon or Hutchinson would have gotten my vote. I probably would have given it to Hutchinson, because he did more with less talent. Ligon has built a strong program, but never got them over the hump and into the sweet 116. Scott has become a "mega-sports" program, like Catholic. Maybe they are the Duke of KY high school sports. People love to root against a perennial winner, that gets a lot of media attention. Once Scott County builds their new High School in a few years, it will split the talent somewhat. And nobody stays on top forever.

I was impressed by Holmes in both the semi and final game. Both times, they were down significantly, but just keep their cool and played their game. Never got rushed, ran their offense, and looked for the best shot. A lot of teams who get down, go into helter-skelter mode, and end up digging a bigger hole. Their composure and maturity amazed me in both games. Mason had too much in the end. And Darius was the primary reason Mason won. He was a level above everyone else on the court. Once you got him the ball on the blocks, he was 90%. I was surprised in the semi-final game, that Mason didn't get him the ball more inside. Shelby was much smaller than Holmes and Darius could have scored 35 in that game. Can't wait to see how he does at UK. We need him bad.

I was there all weekend and saw the games. Setty did step on the floor when the flagrant happened. The refs did talk a while. At the time, the announcer did indicate it was a technical for leaving the bench. The KHSAA, SEC, NCAA etc.. all review technicals, fights, and make rulings after the game is over. So that was not unusal. The refs make the in game calls, and the KHSAA has final determination on eligibility and suspension. Many suspensions are handed down after a game. Based on the KHSAA rules, it does seem he should have been ineligible for the game. Setty DID have a significant impact on the game. I watched as Holmes had one of their better defenders on him all night. Setty got some pretty critical rebounds during the game. If he was not in, they could have "triple teamed" Miller, forced more turnover, etc. No one will ever know, but if he didn't play, I think it is likely that Holmes may have won the game. I am not from Mason County, but was hoping they would win last night. So I am happy they won, but have mixed feelings on the issue. I think Setty did a pretty stupid thing during the semi-finals. I know it was the heat of the moment, but leaving the bench is a pretty clear rule, and the kids and coaches know it and talk about it. He might have cost his team a state championship. Unfortunately for Mason, this will always be somewhat of a "tainted" championship for them. It will be debated for many many years. And I feel bad for the kids. The "mega-teams" in KY (Scott Co, Mason, Catholic, UHA and some others) are kind of like Duke on the college stage. If you are not one of their fans, most of the rest of the state dislikes them. Many people feel they somehow have an unfair advantage for whatever reasons. When you are perennially good, and get a lot of media attention, you will always be a bigger target for the rest of the state. Regardless in the end, I think things worked out. Mason, Catholic, Bryan Station, and Holmes were the best teams in the state throughout this year. And of those four might have won it on a different day or week. They all should be proud, along with all the teams in the state. The fact that we have so many people on these boards at all hours of the day/night, 365 days of the year, speaks to why KY is the greatest basketball state in the country.

Great game. Wish I could have been there. Got tickets for the rest of the sessions. Would love to see Holmes, Catholic, Mason and Hazard/Shelby in the final 4. Mason better come to play Friday night against Tilghman.

OK. Thanks....

I just tuned into the Sweet 16 on the radio, and they were doing a moment of silence. Does anyone know what for? Thanks////

Saw them once this year and was impressed. I have tickets for Fri & Sat. Hope to see them then.

They need to realign the 11th region. It's a shame so many good teams in the same districts and regions. Scott needs to move out to another region to balance things out.

To me it seems that it is a legitimate reason for transferring. Dad lost his job, so they gotta move somewhere. I would have expected them to pick a school like Catholic or Scott. I don't see how the KHSAA can rule him ineligible. Hope the move improves his game. Of course, this is a nightmare scenario for the other 11th region schools.

I too think it must have something to do with the how the other coaches feel about the UHA. But I still don't think you take it out on one of the best players to come out of KY in a long time. Shame on the 2nd region coaches!

A lot of the jobs open up in the summer after school is out. Do you all really think Ligon will go from Station to Tates Creek? I have always heard that Ligon wants to get back to Louisville. I think his wife still lives there and he commutes a lot back and forth.

Guess Scott County definitely # 1 since getting Dakota, and possibly Jackson. Funny how things work out.

LexCath looked like they will be hard to beat last night vs a very good Station team. LexCath has improved a lot over the last 4-5 weeks. I have seen both LexCath and UHA play 3-4 times each this season. If I were "a betting man", I would have to pick LexCath by double digits. They are so big and strong. Novasel, Stewart, and Smart. Plus Vee Sanford who plays like a 6'7" guy. They can take it inside or out. But it would not be the greatest of upsets if UHA won. Hopson will have to play the full 32 minutes and have the game of his HS career. Nonetheless, a very very good first round game. But in the end, I think Catholic may just be too strong for UHA.