Handy Manny

Cooper - 48 Cov. Cath - 35

Cooper was led by Murphy who had maybe 20. Yamil had a solid game defensively and helped with handling the Boone press. Swan was in and out of the game giving breathers. He never really got going offensively. Boone was hot early from 3. Hunter Moore hit at least 3 maybe 4 in the first quarter. Maddox Jones has a solid game and probably ended up leading Boone. It was a very good freshman game.

Second Semifinal Cooper 55 Boone County 51

Boone County also has Maddox Jones and Marvin Bryant. Jones is 6’5 and plays JV and spot varsity. Bryant is strong and athletic. He can cause havoc around the rim.

Semi Finals tomorrow. Who are the top players for the teams. Boone County Cov Cath Cooper Simon Kenton

I was curious about that. I glanced at rosters early in the season and saw that Cov. Cath had 3 freshman playing strictly JV. This says a lot for what's in the pipeline. I also saw that Simon Kenton has 1 also.

Is Cov. Cath the favorite to win again this year?

I am just trying to start a discussion. I recently saw on social media where an AAU program out of Louisville, KY will be fielding teams in the 6th, 7th, & 8th grades this year. The 6th grade will have 2 players at 6'9" and the 8th grade will have 2 players at 6'10" or better. I have not seen the listed heights of the big guys on the 7th grade team. I have coached a lot of AAU and these 6th graders are bigger than anyone I have ever had even at the 17U level. So my question is, how do you defend this size with a typical 6th grade team where your bigs are in the 6'1 - maybe 6'3" range. I had a 6'1" big man in 6th grade and he towered over everyone.

Some of the selections were surprising and some were spot on. I was just curious myself about who picked them and what they used to decide.

Were the all tournament selections made by each team's coach?

This was the best middle school game I have seen in a very long time. Both teams competed and the atmosphere was great. The crowd was standing the whole last minute at an 8th grade game. Congrats to both programs. They were clearly the best two teams in the NKMSAA.

I'm liking Ockerman over Holmes Highlands over Ballyshannon Woodland over Summit View St. Pius over IHM

Pius has to be the overall favorite. I would never had guessed early on that this team would have 1 loss all season playing less Hagen and Hussey for a good part. Ockerman was my early favorite at least on paper. Highlands seems to be peaking at the right time now that everyone is healthy and had a chance to play together for a while. I feel like either of three could win it all, but Woodland, IHM, and even Camp Ernst could sneak in. Camp Ernst is my dark horse pick. They had regular season wins over Highlands and Ockerman.

We are wrapping up the regular season this week. Who stood out as 8th graders this year? Any surprises? I know some of the programs suffered as a result of players playing up and I believe there are several other guys who could have played up but didn't.

Holmes at Camp Ernst 7th - Camp Ernst 8th - Camp Ernst by 5.