se7ens

Agreed 1000 percent. I am really excited to see what this team does.

The situation with Boyle and the situation with Somerset are not the same. Whitaker and Godby drive that Briar Jumper team. Will they get better with further additions? Yep. But at Boyle, you literally had the entire team against Adair made up of players who had NEVER experienced playing in a varsity game. Somerset slipped one spot and it was because they got passed up by Mercer, the team that beat them. I think Somerset gets better but the Boyle team against Adair will not be seen again this year.

This week's rankings saw a significant amount of shakeup in the top half with no movement in the bottom. I expect that volatility in the top ten to continue as the tiers shake out, new players get adjusted to their teams, and rosters get completed with football now coming to an end. Some general and thoughts and things to consider to start. First, Boyle County is going to just float around in the rankings until they get consistency. I considered their football players when ranking them in the preseason. However, these week by week rankings have to consider the team on the floor. Obviously help is coming soon, but we cannot ignore a thrashing like the one they took to Adair County. So they fall this week. I think we are also trying to define the group of teams that can win the region. I think I would have put it at six in the preseason. That would have ruled out Rockcastle, Lincoln, Danville, and Southwestern (as well as the teams ranked below them). I think those four teams specifically have a chance to really assert themselves into that conversation but they have a lot to prove. Now, onto the first edition of the weekly rankings: 1. Mercer County - This may very well may be there only week at number 1 or they may make a habit out of it. They have a big week in region looming up after this week but look for them to extend their initial winning streak this week when they play Western Hills and Jackson County. Trevor Ellis opened up the season with back to back 20 plus point performances and the Titans now are sitting at 3 - 0 as they defeated Somerset, Taylor County, and Clay County. 2. Wayne County - It was a drastically different story in the two games the Cardinals won last week. Kendall & Kayden Phillips combined for 41 points in an absolute beat down of Garrard County 83 to 42. However, the Phillips duo were held to 5 points a piece against Whitley County in which Wayne was still able to grind out the win behind Seth Farmer's 14 points and 10 rebounds. Those are two very different ways to win a ball game and, for now, we will chalk that up as a positive for the Cardinals. But single digit nights from Kendall Phillips may spell trouble if they happen with any regularity. They host Taylor County and Southwestern this week. 3. Pulaski County - If we learned anything last week, Will Blankenship and Zak Anderson are going to be trouble for opposing team's offenses. We know that Pulaski has arguably the best point guard in the region in Carson Fraley. They just needed to replace the pieces around him. It looks like that may have happened and, if so, that vaults the Maroons into the contender discussion. They defeated three storied programs in Madison Central, West Jessamine and Jeffersontown. That's an amazing first week, even if those three teams listed aren't necessarily at their peak. This week they face McCreary Central and Casey County. 4. Danville Christian - DCA is still a contender. And Woodford County is a great team in their own right. But when you lose your opening game at home to a team that lost one of the best talents in the state to transfer and is having to reclaim their identity, you don't get to hang on to the top spot. DCA rebounded from that loss to Woodford County with a 77 to 40 blowout victory over East Jessamine, so the first week wasn't all bad. They go on the road to Evangel Christian and Lincoln County this week. 5. Somerset - The good news - Indred Whitaker, Ben Godby & Aedyn Absher are really good. The bad news - Coach Young is looking to fill the gap after them still. They fell to Mercer County and defeated East Jessamine, both at home. They face West Jessamine, Rockcastle County and Danville this week. These three games should be a nice test to see if the triumvirate of scoring can expect help in the points column or if they will have to continue to carry the water. 6. Rockcastle County - Walker Craig scored 33 in the Rockets' lone game of opening week, a 62 to 44 victory over McCreary Central. They face Danville and Somerset this week, two teams who will give them (and Mr. Craig specifically) a harder time. 7. Boyle County - The aforementioned Rebels sit at seventh after their blowout loss to Adair County. Let's name some names in the scoring column because they won't appear too frequently now that the state champion football team is about to send over most of the basketball roster to Coach Webb. Harper Webb had 12, Owen Wheeler had 10, Seneca Driver and Kylar Goodin each had 9, and Collier Sexton had two points. None of those five appeared in a game for the Rebels last year. They face Southwestern and Harrison County this week. 8. Danville - Tryston Ford's Ads took Tates Creek to overtime and fell by 2 but were able to come back and beat another Fayette public school in Dunbar as they beat the Bulldogs 71 to 59 at East Jessamine. Trevarion Paige recorded 23 points in the loss to Tates Creek. In addition to Paige, the Admirals also have Ontario Hill, Braidin Baughman, DyiRon Moody, and Braylon Guest standing out early this year. They have an incredibly busy week coming up as they play Rockcastle County, Paris, McCreary Central and Somerset. 9. Southwestern - The Warriors started the season out with a trio of wins over Berea, Campbellsville, and Casey County. Connor Hudson has 53 points over those first three victories. Boyle, Wayne County, and Greenwood are on the schedule this week. 10. Lincoln County - The Pats opened up the season with a pair of losses, falling to Lafayette and Harrison County. The long distance shots are not falling consistently as they went 7 of 32 for the first two games. That will need to be rectified if they are going to find success this year. They face Henry Clay and Danville Christian this week. 11. East Jessamine - The Jaguars started the week (and the season) off with a win over Scott County but proceeded to lose to Somerset and DCA. This week they face the Wellspring Guardians and the Burgin Bulldogs. Miyo Jones is averaging over 20 points per game through the first three so it will be interesting to see what numbers he can put up this week against weaker opponents. 12. West Jessamine - The Coach Taylor Harper Era started off with losses to Harrison County and Pulaski County but Ethan Little was able to guide the Colts to Coach Harper's first win, the victory coming over Johnson Central. They face Somerset and Sayre this week. 13. Trinity Christian - The Titans defeated Model and St. Pats but fell to Montgomery County. Alan Coffman had 28 in the win over Model. They face Frankfort, Robertson County, and Casey County this week. 14. Casey County - Casey fell to Southwestern but defeated the homeschooled Kentucky Christian Knights. Reegan Randolph is averaging a clean 20 points per game through the first two contests. They face Burgin, Pulaski and Trinity Christian this week. 15. McCreary Central - The Raiders dropped games to South Laurel and Rockcastle County. They face Pulaski County and Danville this week. 16. Garrard County - Damarion Boatley is averaging 15 points per game as the Golden Lions bested Frankfort but fell hard to Wayne County. They face Somerset Christian, Bryan Station and Whitley County this week. 17. Somerset Christian - So far so good as the Cougars defeated Lynn Camp and Burgin. They play Garrard County and Williamsburg this week. 18. Burgin - The Bulldogs fell to Anderson County, Francis Parker and Somerset Christian last week. They face Casey County and East Jessamine this week. 19. Kentucky School for the Deaf - The Colonels fell to Fairdale in their opening game. They were lead by Dakota Cox with 27. KSD travels to Covington Latin before hosting the Atlanta Area School for the Deaf.

Also Dut, Boyd & Ayiei need to be in that conversation as well. That's a good top ten plus one.

Top 3 - Carson Fraley, Kendall Phillips, Trevor Ellis. Beyond that, in no order, Montavin Quisenberry, Whitaker & Godby from Somerset, Walker Craig, and obviously Owen Barnes if he plays the whole year. Player to watch on top of the ones I mentioned in the preview - Trevor Miracle will have to fill it up this year for the Patriots to have success and he certainly has the shooting ability to do so.

A new Kentucky high school basketball season is quickly approaching and the 12th Region, that narrow portion of territory running down US 27 south of Lexington and branching out as far as McCreary and Wayne counties, is sure to excite. Recently, the region had become top-heavy with parity between the top three to five contenders in the region. This year there is no such dramatic drop off as the talent from top to bottom is down this year. At the onset there is no team in the region that stands out and screams state contender. There still exists a clear group of front runners, this year that number being four. However, on any given night we might see a team from outside that group beat a team from that top group. Let’s take a look at the teams from one all the way to nineteen. Danville Christian Academy – Don Story’s Warriors are first among a pair of teams at the top of the region that are going to be able to put a superb five on the floor with the main question being what comes off the bench. DCA loses Grayson Domidion but returns Emmanuel Dut (15.8 points per game, 6.6 rebounds per game), Titus Boyd (14.9 points per game), Lual Ayiei (9.1 points per game, 9.5 rebounds per game), and Noah Imfeld (6.8 points per game) while also adding Braden Fugate from Garrard County who averaged 8.8 points per game last year for the Golden Lions. But after that group, no one on DCA averaged more than a point per game last year. They also have the cruel path to the postseason that is the 45th district. Can they hold up with so little depth over such a long season facing stiff competition? Wayne County – Mason Burchett is gone for Coach Rodney Woods but he still has a stacked lineup that may or may not include the uber-athletic Anatajuan Dumphord. But while we are waiting to see if the gridiron star also takes the hardwood, the Cardinals will be featuring possibly the best overall player in the region in Kendall Phillips. His 17.3 points per game performance last year was the high mark for the Cardinals. He is also joined by Kayden Phillips and Seth Farmer. Like the DCA Warriors, the problems start when you get past the starting lineup. One injury or slump could spell their doom. Somerset – Almost the entire roster returns for the Briar Jumpers as they will feature all of last year’s top 7 scorers back on the court. They are led by Indred Whitaker, Ben Godby, and Aedyn Asher. Gody and Whitaker are at the top of a six player senior class that also features emerging guard Jamison Coomer. Boyle County – Montavin Quisenberry and Guy Turner are both back for the Rebels as well as Avery Bodner and Maddox Hager not to mention Josh Bixler and Demauriah Brown coming over from Danville. That is the good news. The bad news, at least for the start of the season, is that the Rebels will be without all of those players until football is done. Seriously, I have no idea who they will actually put on the court. As always when it comes to Boyle County, that means they will face the real possibility of a long and brutal December but will end up with a roster with a large amount of physicality and athleticism. Pulaski County – This is where things get interesting as Pulaski County, the reigning regional champ, sits at the top of what can be considered the next tier of competition beyond the frontrunners. There is a lot of parity here and the order, I freely admit, can certainly be argued. But deference should almost always be given to the team that can put the best player on the court, and most nights Carson Fraley is going to have a shot at winning that claim. Alongside Fraley is the returning Will Blankenship. Beyond that you will see a lot of new faces for the Maroons. Mercer County – So, the Titans have a better argument than anyone in the “second tier” that they are an actual contender. Trevor Ellis is fantastic. Thaddeus Mays was a terrific backcourt weapon. But two burning questions remain – the status of Owen Barnes and the point guard spot. They may be able to provide positive answers for those quickly. If that is the case, I think you can pencil them in as district champ and a regional contender. But without Barnes and solid point play, they are solidly second tier. Rockcastle County – The Rockets return over ninety percent of their scoring from last year. This includes the dynamic Walker Craig, one of the most versatile threats in the region. Overall, their 2022 – 2023 campaign was middling with a .500 record. They have the opportunity to make a massive leap forward, though they may be one year away from being a regional contender. Lincoln County – On paper, this is the right spot for the Patriots. I’m still not buying it though. With Jeff Jackson at the helm, a purposeful & methodic style of play, and Connor Davis and Blade Nuckols still around, I think Lincoln could very well make some noise throughout the year. As of today, William Bishop is not on the roster, and that may very well throw a wet blanket on the dream of a great season, but with the way Lincoln plays they don’t necessarily need depth. They have won regional titles with benches lacking varsity talent, they can do it again. East Jessamine – It has certainly been a rough stretch as of late for the Jaguars but this may be the year they get back to mounting a respectable campaign. They probably also represent the bottom of the second tier of competition in the region. They return Miyo Jones, Myles Radford, and Keelyn Daniel and most of their reserves. They should be able to compete with Mercer County for the district title but how much of a threat they are to make a serious run in the post-season is yet to be determined. Southwestern – And so we enter the third tier of competition in the region which is occupied by a slew of teams that saw their cupboard get decimated by graduation and/or transfers. Connor Hudson leads a very young Southwestern team. Hudson is one of four seniors on the roster and they are joined by just one junior. Danville – This Admiral squad is going to look a whole lot different than last year. Tryston Ford takes over for Coach McKinney and will look to rebuild the program after transfers and graduation took almost the entire varsity roster from last year. West Jessamine – Taylor Harper replaces longtime Colts’ coach Damon Kelley and will have a massive rebuild in front of him as he returns no one who averaged more than 3 points per game last year. Trinity Christian – Bryce Thompson and Alan Coffman return for the Titans. This may be high for them, but given their returning scoring and their slightly beefed up schedule, Trinity Christian may be hoping to replicate the journey of DCA from their cellar to the top over the span of three years. Casey County – Caleb Brown is back but Ethan Willoughby is gone, along with his 27.8 points per game. Will Brown be able to increase his productivity to fill that hole? Will others step up? Or will the Colonels take a step back this year? McCreary Central – Kyle Stephens, the much-heralded Raider star, has graduated and not much remains. How sharp the decline will be is unknown but it is hard to believe they have any marquis wins that compare with last season’s. Garrard County – The transfer of Braden Fugate and graduation of most of the other Golden Lions rotation means scoring will have to be generated by some fresh faces. Somerset Christian – And finally, we reach the small school fourth tier of the region. All is not lost for these teams though as Danville Christian dwelled down here just two seasons ago and Trinity Christian is poised to compete with some larger schools this year. The Somerset Christian Cougars return Ethan Warren and Elijah Brummett though they lost their top scorer, Noah Brummett, to graduation. They hope to improve from last year’s 7 – 24 performance. Burgin – Jacobe Taylor is the bright spot returning for the Bulldogs as they look to build more positive momentum in their program. Kentucky School for the Deaf – The Colonels open with Fairdale in what is an expanded schedule from what they have had the past few years. However, they currently have a roster comprised of seven players, only two of them not being in 7th or 8th grade.

5 point game- Woodford County 4 point game- Simon Kenton 3 point game- Bishop Brossart 2 point game- Greenwood 1 point game- Ballard

They had the game in Wayland's gym last year. I hope they do that on a yearly basis.

This job was posted on the school district site 7/13/23 and is now on the KHSAA open jobs page as well. Coach Mike Walls went 24-35 over two seasons.

Here's what I have to say, and I don't want to be mean, however, that article has me extremely confused. Leave out all the cute sports puns, don't call anyone involved by their last name since they all have a last name, and give me a timeline/account of events I can actually follow. Woof.

Dan Albrinck, NCC class of ‘84, has been named head coach.

No idea.

Apparently this job has been open for about a month now after the resignation of Beau Menefee.

That requirement would buck the historical trend for basketball at NCC. As far as my memory serves, the only coach to be hired on either side with head coaching experience has been Ron Dawn (admittedly that has happened several times with that one individual). But on the girls side, Meyer, Stoll, and McDonald all came in without head coaching experience. The bigger trend is being an alum. Besides Luhn and Detzel on the boys side, every basketball head coach at NCC since like 2000 has been a graduate of the school.

I'll be honest, I have no idea who the candidates will be. I don't think they are any of the names mentioned here so far and I don't think they will be from the current staff (or we would have a new coach already). With that said, my best guesses at people who may go for it: Marcus Harris, Ludlow boys' assistant and former girls assistant at NDA, HC, SHDHS, and Scott Sam Elsbernd, former boys coach at Pendleton and girls coach at Bracken George Stoll, former NCC girls head coach Nicole Chiodi - former NCC assistant and legendary player Tyler Teke - former Lloyd head coach and Ryle assistant Paul Sturgeon - current Lloyd head coach and former St. Henry Head Coach

The year he is leaving doesn't surprise me at all. His eldest graduated last year, she played for him. His middle daughter didn't play basketball but she graduates this year and his youngest, a son, will be coming up through the ranks soon and a varsity girls schedule would probably keep him away from seeing a lot of those events. Doing it in April is a little weird, though its not uncommon for Catholic schools to make these moves after Spring Break. The biggest surprise for me is that they didn't have an in-house coach ready to take over as has been the case for most of their basketball openings, men's and women's, for most of history. It will definitely draw a large applicant pool. And also, call me crazy, but there's a non-zero chance one of them is John Brannen.

NCC's Ralph Meyer III has stepped down after 5 years as head coach.

I'll say that looking at it, this should be an easy Warren Central win on paper. However, I also think it has the potential for been the hardest game for them on their projected path. Pulaski doesn't have the depth that Warren Central does and I'm more concerned about that then any physical mismatches. I think this could be a tie in the 30s around half but end up being a 20 point win for Warren Central. With that said, Pulaski just needs to control tempo at some critical junctures to stem that from happening. Must easier said than done, but that's how they win.

If Pulaski can pull off the upset of the tournament over Warren Central, it’ll be at least in part to Barek Williams. He is probably the best overall player of Pulaski’s three-headed monster that includes Carson Farley and Cayden Lancaster. All three have been overshadowed in the 12th region MVP talk but I wouldn’t be surprised if one of them, especially Williams, opens some eyes at Rupp.

Congratulations to the Pulaski County Maroons on surviving and advancing out of what is most certainly one of the most challenging regions top to bottom in the state. Let's look at how the regional tournament culminated and the road Pulaski has in front of them. Semifinal 1 - Lincoln County 55, West Jessamine 44. The hosting Patriots owned this game from start to finish, dictating tempo and keeping the Colts out of sorts offensively all night. Colton Ralston was definitely the star of the game with 17 points and 9 boards. The Patriots ended up with just 1 rebound shy of West Jessamine's rebounding total, getting 21 to the Colts 22. That number could have been much more lopsided in favor of West looking at the game on paper but the Patriots held their own physically. The Colts definitely can say they had a successful year, especially the second half of the season, but they did not play up to their potential facing elimination against Lincoln County. Semifinal 2 - Pulaski County 44, McCreary County Central 41. Kyle Stephens put the Raiders of McCreary Central on his back once again scoring 23 points and accounting for more than half of the team total but ultimately he could not drag them across the finish line. Carson Fraley led the Maroon effort with 16 as Pulaski showed off their winning recipe of offensive production out of their three headed monster of Carson Fraley, Barek Williams and Cayden Lancaster, keeping their starting 5 on the court as much as humanly possible and playing a methodical style of ball that puts a dramatic sense of importance on each possession. Finals - Pulaski County 57, Lincoln 50. Between January 1st and the end of the district tournament, Pulaski won just one game where they scored under 70. They did it three times in the regional tournament. Given the lack of depth beyond their top 3, the game plans Coach Fraley rolled out certainly played a part in conserving the energy needed to play a complete game each time out at Lincoln County. Frankly, they won the tournament and beat Lincoln County playing very much like Lincoln County. Barek Williams led the way in the title game and finishes regional play with an argument that he, Tramane Alcorn of Lincoln and Kyle Stephens of McCreary are the three best players in the region. The Patriots don't end up making it to Rupp this year and lose Alcorn, Jackson Sims and Colton Ralston. They will be good next year, but I don't know if they will be the fierce contender they were this year. So what's next? Pulaski County finds themselves in an incredibly interesting position. They play Warren Central to open the tournament and the Dragons are probably the best team in the tournament from top to bottom. Warren Central has just one loss on the year and that was to Madison Central, coincidentally a team Pulaski County beat by 1 at the very beginning of the season. If Pulaski can get past the Dragons, the top bracket is wide open and they will have a legitimate chance to get to the title game. Logic dictates that Pulaski may be best off continuing the methodical tempo that got them through the regional tournament as Warren Central holds an overall greater amount of depth and will most likely want to push the tempo to create an early lead that they can coast on. I do not see the Maroons having the capability to overcome a double digit deficit at any time in this game so they truly need to make every possession count. I will be back next week after the state tournament to recap Pulaski's run and discuss whether they were able to slay the Dragons and pursue the title or if they were just one of several teams left in Warren Central's dust.

Gosh, David Buchanan would be a home run hire in my book. About as high quality of a man and student of the sport as you are going to find. Yes, they could definitely get a high talented up and comer or a big splash out of state hire, but I will be firmly rooting for a Buchanan hire.

With the first round of the regional now complete and the semifinals not starting until Monday, let's go ahead and jump in to looking back at the first 4 games of the tournament. We will finish off with a look at the semifinal matchups and what could be in store in the finals. Lincoln County 51, Wayne County 40 - The hosting Patriots kicked off the tournament through a solid fourth quarter performance, outscoring the Cardinals 19 to 6 in the final period. Wayne County was leading 34 to 32 heading into the 4th in what had been a back and forth game up to that point. The Patriots had double-digit scoring performances from Tramane Alcorn, Colton Ralston and Jackson Sims and the Cardinals were led, per usual, by Kendall Phillips and Mason Burchett. West Jessamine 70 Rockcastle 50 - This proved to be the most lopsided matchup of the first round. Walker Craig scored 26 of the Rockets' 50, but, as we talked about in the preview, the one-man star power was not enough against the depth of West Jessamine. The game was never really in question and the Colts move on. Pulaski 65, Mercer County 48 - Though the Maroons pulled away in the end, this game was back and forth all the way into the 3rd. Trevor Ellis scored 19 to lead the Titans. Pulaski's three-headed monster of Fraley, Lancaster and Williams were not to be contained and each did what was needed to eventually beat down the Mercer defense and open the flood gates late. McCreary County Central 48, Boyle County 44 - The absence of Montavin Quisenberry loomed large as the crowd missed out on what could have been an epic matchup between Kyle Stephens and Quisenberry. Kyle Stephens put the Raiders on his back as they thwarted the best efforts of Jakei Tarter, Avery Bodner and the Rebels. Semifinal Preview Lincoln County vs. West Jessamine - This is a rematch of a December matchup between the two regional powers that also took place at Lincoln. The Patriots held the final edge over the Colts 71 to 68 in overtime. Jacob Jones had 21 and Daniel Waters had 19 for the Colts. That game was one of four 70-plus offensive performances the Patriots had this year as Tramane Alcorn led the way with 19. What is surprising about that game is that Colton Ralston was held in check, going 0 for 5 from three. Alcorn had his 19 points off 17 shots. I do not expect the semifinal game to mirror the first game at all with both teams being efficient on both sides of the ball and creating a back and forth game that ends somewhere in the high fifties or low sixties. Pulaski County vs. McCreary County Central - This is another rematch of an early December game. On December 6th, Pulaski bested the Raiders 67 to 57 behind 21 points from Cayden Lancaster and 20 from Barek Williams. Kyle Stephens was held to 16 and overall the Raiders shot 2 of 13 from long distance. McCreary has done a lot of evolving since then and Pulaski has struggled some down the stretch. It will be interesting to see how these two measure up since that early season contest. The rebounding difference was just by 3 in favor of Pulaski last time so it really seems to have come down to shooting and offensive efficiency. How much will being on a neutral court this time as opposed to being at Pulaski County play a part? Pulaski is the better and deeper team on paper but when you break this down, the Raiders have a legitimate shot. Championship Game Thoughts Lincoln County has beat both McCreary and Pulaski and when it comes to the Maroons, they really just devastated them. West Jessamine has not faced McCreary and fell to Pulaski in early December when the Colts had yet to hit their stride and Pulaski was beginning their red hot start to the year. With that said, it is obvious that whoever wins the Lincoln County vs. West Jessamine matchup will be the favorite in the title game. McCreary or Pulaski could certainly win, no doubt, but they haven't been on the same tier as Lincoln or West in the last month or so. West is the deepest team left, followed by Lincoln and Pulaski in no real certain order with McCreary in the rear. That certainly matters. Final note - I think the championship game is probably destined to be in the mid sixties with the exception that I think West Jessamine has the potential to blow out McCreary running away just based on style and depth. Not that that would happen, but it could. End of the day, this final four should produce some fantastic games and a champion who will represent the region well in the Sweet 16.

Athletic Director Jim Hicks released a statement this morning stating Chad Montgomery, a 2001 Bellevue graduate, is taking the helm for the black and gold Tigers.

And he said yes. Chad Montgomery has been announced as the next football coach at Bellevue.

Cats 79 Commodores 64