ApolloFan98

We'll have the Aces for one more week this regular season. Here is an audio link... https://owensbororadio.com/player/?playerID=606

I think it would but only because of the majority is picking Catholic. Talent wise, OHS is at least even with Catholic, so in that sense I don't think it would be much of an upset. I think a lot of people are sleeping on Owensboro because of the results against Bowling Green and CAL. We're going to find out here in a few hours. For anyone interested in the radio stream, we'll have the call here... https://owensbororadio.com/player/?playerID=606

This should be a great game. I wasn't sure the Aces could hold up defensively against Greenwood, but they passed that test with flying colors. I do think Owensboro at Rash is an even bigger animal, but I was impressed at how well Catholic did against Tel Tel and the Gators run game. Owensboro will have an athletic advantage on the edge with Winstead and Hampton, but I expect Catholic to sell out on the run and force Delacey to beat them. On the other side, I am glad to see Brady Atwell getting some state wide recognition this week. The kid is the real deal. Owensboro will not only have to get pressure, but they will need to get contained pressure because Atwell can hurt you with his legs. The Aces offense looks like a well oiled machine right now with the quick passing attack looking unstoppable at times. I have no doubt that the Red Devils will be the best test, but I do not see Catholic being outscored. Aces 35 - Devils 28

Be a rough night for the Eagles. Burns falling on hard times over the past decade has really hampered Apollo across the board. Not just football but basketball too. A lot of the strong College View talent went to DC over the past handful of years but Apollo did land Max Johnson and some kids that played with him. As a freshman at QB, he looks to be the real deal and can hopefully be someone who can help elevate that program with Coach Edge. In the meantime, its an uphill battle for Apollo Football.

If you're an old fashioned radio guy, we'll have the call on 1027 The Game tonight here.. https://owensbororadio.com/player/?playerID=606 This should be a really fun game. I think a lot of folks underrate Owensboro Catholic a little bit. If LCA doesn't get finger tips on that Atwell pass on the last play of the game last season, who knows where this team would have gone? I hope I don't jinx the kid but for my money, Brady Atwell is a top 5 QB in the state. He hasn't faced much competition this year, but the next 3 weeks should be a good test with Greenwood, Owensboro and Henderson coming up. If the Aces can find a way to run the table in those games, their RPI should be at the top of 2A which would be a great feather in the cap come playoff time. Coach Morris has almost abandoned the run game in favor of a quick pass attack and Owensboro Catholic has a ton of weapons. Tutt Carrico, Duce Sims, Noah Rhinerson and Warren Eblhar are a tremendous stable of WR's. Miles Edge and Eli Blair can also catch the ball out of the backfield. I am looking forward to seeing how they hold up against a very solid 5A program tonight. On the defensive side, I would say this group is somewhat untested thus far. Their run defense has looked stellar thru the scrimmage season and the first two weeks, but I do not think they have faced anyone with a front like they will see tonight. Vince Carrico is a fun kid to watch at MLB. I think the DB's could be a weakness but no one they have played have been able to attack them as of yet. I do think Greenwood will have some success offensively tonight. At the end of the day, I will take Atwell as the best player on the field to make enough plays to get the win. Owensboro Catholic 28-21.

We're daily now from 5-6 central time on 1027 The Game. We'll be discussing it here and there on Wednesday and Thursday but we'll break it down at length on Friday. Might have to get you to call in one day this week to talk about the Purples!

Just like @Purple88said, the Henderson and Greenwood wins were nice wins, but they aren't state championship level wins. Owensboro wins most of the games in which the talent discrepancy is clear but when its close, the record hasn't been very good. Since that nice win over a BG in 2018... 44-7 L to S Warren, 10-8 L to Evansville Central, 28-17 L to FD, 28-27 W over FD, 17-7 L to BG, 51-38 L to St X, 35-7 L to FD, 28-14 L to St X and 14-2 L to FD. If you want to go back even further to 2015, they did score a nice win over Evansville Reitz 35-34 but lost 6 times to BG in that stretch plus a loss to Indiana state champion Mater Dei. That makes for a 2-15 record vs state championship level programs since 2015. I am not here to poo poo the football program at Owensboro. I want them to win these types of games. It makes things more fun! I know those are extremely tough games! I've just become pretty jaded in believing they can win games against top competition. Not trying to ruffle feathers. I am just very results oriented guy. Hope they can start a new streak this week!

Outside of the FD playoff win at Rash a few years ago, when was the last time Owensboro won a high level game like this week or last week? Its always the little details that cost them. Until I see them win one of these, I've got to think BG comes in to Rash a 2 TD favorite.

Heartbreaking loss for Owensboro. Felt like they controlled most of the game outside the final 30 seconds. I would have thought a physically played game would have benefitted the Devils but Ashland played tough. Owensboro gave up far too many second chance looks. I believe Ashland had 16-17 offensive boards. Waaaaay too many. In the end, it was free throws that did the Devils in. It's been a struggle from the stripe all season. Hats off to a great senior group, including one of the best Devils every in Kenyatta Carbon. It was a joy watching Kenyatta play over the past 4 years.

That is a great question. I think it is a number of factors. During Steve Barker's time, a lot of folks who ran the feeder system had gotten older and stepped away from the program. That really hurt the up and coming talent. There really hasn't been a lot to work with compared to what Apollo has been used to since they opened the school. I also think Tim Riley coming over to Catholic has drawn all of the transfer talent to Catholic instead of Apollo. In the past, if an area kid was looking to transfer to a good stable program, Apollo would have been the pick. That is just not the case anymore. After Apollo went to state in 2018 with a senior heavy group, the following group just never came together. Some kids quit to focus on other sports while others transferred out due to the instability. Without kids coming over to join the program, they're going to have a long road back to being competitive for the next year or two, at least.

Coach Starns has stepped down after a rough 3 year stretch that saw the program go 12-62 overall including 0-18 inside the 9th District. I believe Starns is the first Coach in school history to fail to guide the program to a 3rd Region Title. Wayne Chapman, John Whitmer, Will Wyman, Chuck Broughton, Greg Baughn, Tony Hopper, Steve Sergeant and Steve Barker all won titles for the Eagles. Now the Eagles begin the search for the right person to lead them out of the worst stretch in the history of the program.

Watching Owensboro in the regular season vs Owensboro in the postseason has been like watching 2 different teams. Coach Drake nailed down his rotation and Ji getting his defensive legs under him have made all the difference. They would frequently get beat off the dribble early in the season and it would break them down. Now, if they are getting beat, Ji is protecting the rim and no one is helping down. It has forced a ton of misses and there won't be many teams at Rupp that are as dangerous in transition as Owensboro. They will need to maintain that defensive energy to give them a shot against Ashland because they will not be able to leave the shooters. This should be an excellent first round game.

Owensboro (3rd Region Champions 19-10) vs Ashland (16th Region Champions 22-11) Opening round game between 2 of the winningest programs in Kentucky High School Basketball. These two programs hooked up in the opening round of the 2019 Sweet 16. Ashland scored the 58-50 win. The Tomcats coming in off a win over Boyd County who they lost to in the 64th District Championship. They are led by Zander Carter's 22.3 ppg. Owensboro struggled to close the regular season with 3 straight losses but have looked like a different team in the postseason. They avenged 2 regular season losses to Owensboro Catholic by beating them in the district and regional tournament. Kenyatta Carbon comes in leading the Devils with 22.1 ppg.

I know Warren Central was short that game too, but Owensboro has looked like a completely different team since Webb started logging major minutes. It has taken so much pressure off their guards and helped them get in transition more often. That said, it's been so long since this region has won a state game, I refuse to look past Ashland but I would love to see that quarterfinal match-up.

Owensboro is a team to watch. They were VERY impressive during the 3rd Region Tournament. I know the 3rd hasn't won a game at Rupp since 2015 and I am not taking an OHS win over Ashland for granted, but I would love to see Owensboro vs Warren Central in round 2. I realize that Central 40 pieced them early in the season but I do think round 2 could be an interesting match-up.

Owensboro is playing scary right now. Hats off to Coach Drake and the job he has done during this postseason run. Webb playing the role of the rim protector has completely changed the look of this team. If they continue to give this type of defensive effort at Rupp, they can play with anyone.

Owensboro(18-10) v Owensboro Catholic(28-5) - This is round 4 of this 9th District match-up! The Aces won round 1 in OT, 80-78. They put together a furious 2nd half come back together to get the game into overtime where the Devils were without Kenyatta Carbon due to fouling out. The game was an instant classic. Round 2 was dominated Catholic, as they won by 20. Round 3 took place in the district championship and saw an Owensboro team that started to take their game to another level. The Devils won by 14. Owensboro entered the postseason struggling, only going 4-7 after Christmas break. Since entering the postseason, Coach Drake shortened his bench and found rotations that have worked very well together. He has gotten great defensive minutes from Ji Webb and much better spacing on offense to help them go 22-54 from beyond the arc. Kenyatta Carbon has taken his game up a notch, putting up 25 ppg in the postseason The Aces are on the opposite side of that coin, as they have not been at their best in the postseason. They benefited from playing Apollo, Edmonson and Breck on their way to the regional championship. Brian Griffith is averaging 21 ppg. Owensboro Catholic will need big games from their role players in Bikeman, Gray and Eblehar. If those 3 can knock down some shots beyond the arc, it will keep this game within striking distance. The Coaching match-up is an interesting one. Tim Riley is in his 8th season, has 2 regional titles and a total record of 169-95 at Catholic. He is 20-5 in 3rd region elimination games. Against the Devils though, he is only 5-19 and 3-4 in the postseason. That said, he is 3-0 against Owensboro in elimination games. State Championship winning Coach Rod Drake is in his 15th season. He has 3 regional titles & a state title in 2015. His overall record at Owensboro is 264-159. PREDICTION - Owensboro 66 - Owensboro Catholic 54

1-3.... ouch!! Semi-finals are set! Owensboro Catholic vs Breck County and Owensboro vs Butler County. The Devils have officially turned the corner and are playing defense at a championship level. Ty Price put on a show against Hancock County and should be a very fun matchup against the Devils. Owensboro Catholic is a heavy favorite against Breck County but they have not been real sharp over the last few weeks. Everything is setting up for an Owensboro vs Owensboro Catholic final, but you never know in tournament games.

District Tournaments around the area brought surprising results. Maybe none bigger than Muhlenberg County, who closed last weeks poll ranked 14th out of 15 teams. The two time defending champs pulled not just one, but two upsets in route to the another 10th district title. In the 9th district, Owensboro looked like the team we had been waiting for all season, as they were never in danger against Daviess County or Owensboro Catholic. Even with the big wins, the regional draw did the Devils no favors, as they pulled Ohio County in round 1. If the district tournaments were any indication, the region is completely up for grabs! Wednesday - Breck County(11-17) vs Muhlenberg County(8-22) - The Cinderella Mustangs will look to keep it rolling against a Breck team that won and lost on late buckets in the 11th District Tournament. Kaden Ray comes in averaging a double double and should be a great matchup with Breck big man Hunter Barr. Madox Jernigan powered the Mustangs to the regional title with his shooting on Thursday. He had 27 in the regular season meeting between these two that saw the Mustangs win by 6. On the other side, Mercer Rogers scored 22 in the loss. He should play a big factor if the Tigers find a way to win. This matchup is even on paper, but the Mustangs are the two time defending champs and have all the momentum. PREDICTION - Mustangs by 3 Owensboro Catholic(26-5) vs Edmonson County(18-12) - This is a low key interesting matchup. The Aces did not look sharp in their two games in the 9th District Tournament. They are led by Brian Griffith, who comes in 3rd in the region in scoring at 21.1 ppg. He will need help from his supporting cast, Tutt Carrico, Parker Gray and Luke Bikeman. For Edmonson, Braxton Highbaugh comes in with 14.3 ppg and 7.6 boards per contest. Braden Wall and Will Alexander are putting up double figures and will need big games to pull the upset. It will be interesting to see what kind of defense Coach Johnson brings against Griffith and the Aces. While the Aces are on upset alert in this game, Tim Riley doesn't get upset very often. PREDICTION - Aces by 2 Thursday - Butler County(21-10) vs Hancock County(18-11) - These two teams did not play in the regular season. The biggest story coming into the game is the health of Ty Price. He has been nursing an ankle injury that slowed him during the district tournament. Meanwhile, the Hornets come in hot, having on 7 of their last 8 games. Devin Powers has been putting together huge games lately, and Kaleb Keown is one of the more underrated players in the region. It will be interesting to see if the Hornets have an answer for Lawson Rice in the post. He is pulling almost 12 rebounds per game. This is a game that features a group of super sophomores against a team full of experienced seniors. In this spot, that experience usually pays off. PREDICTION - Hornets by 4 Ohio County(23-8) vs Owensboro(16-10) - Without a doubt, this is the game of the first round. Owensboro saved it's best 2 games of the season for the district tournament. Coach Drake settled on a good rotation, and the Devils played their most consistent defense of the season in the 2 wins. Ohio County on the other hand did not bring its best after a week layoff. These two teams just met 2 weeks ago and saw Ohio County put together a huge second half to pull out the win. For Owensboro, can they show the consistency to make a run?? For Ohio County, can they handle the ball pressure the Devils will bring? Look for big games out of Kenyatta Carbon AND Elijah Decker on both sides. Which supporting cast does enough to pull out the win?? PREDICTION - Eagles by 2 TOP SCORERS IN 3rd REGION TOURNEY... 1. Ty Price - Butler County - 30.9 ppg 2. Kenyatta Carbon - Owensboro - 21.6 ppg 3. Brian Griffith - Owensboro Catholic - 21.1 ppg 4. Lawson Rice - Butler County - 18.3 ppg & 11.6 rpg (Leads Region in Rebounding) 5. Elijah Decker - Ohio County - 17.4 ppg 6. Kaleb Keown - Hancock County - 15.4 ppg 7. Hunter Barr - Breck County - 15 ppg / 9.4 rpg 8. Devyn Powers - Hancock County - 14.6 ppg 9. Braxton Highbaugh - Edmonson County - 14.3 ppg 10. Madox Jernigan - Muhlenberg County - 14 ppg Double Double Avg - Kadin Ray - Muhlenberg County - 12.3 ppg / 10.5 rpg (2nd in region in rebounding)

I was really pulling for Steve Barker and Caverna to get to the 5th Region Tournament. They have had a great year and that program is in good hands moving forward. Congrats to Green County on a great game!

What a great night of basketball it was around the region last night. You had several great games that went right down to the wire. It seems like it has been a few years since the district tournaments were this competitive. Apollo gave the Aces all they wanted in the 9th district opener, falling 58-50. The Aces came out extremely flat and left the door open for Apollo. The Eagles trailed by 5 at halftime and battled to keep it close until a 7-0 spurt gave Catholic a double digit lead early in the 4th. A big 3 by Zjahn Tutt cut the Aces lead to 4 with 3 minutes to go but Apollo could get no closer. The Eagles were doomed by 16 missed free throws. In the 10th the 2 time defending regional champions came to play! Led by Kadin Ray's 33 points, the Stangs took down the home standing Cougars in overtime. Mclean battled from behind all game and outscored Muhlenberg by 7 in the 4th to get the game to OT but did not have enough, as Muhlenberg won 65-60. In the 11th, Hancock County rolled Cloverport behind Devin Powers 11 3's. Powers finished with 39 points. In game 2, Meade and Breck played nip and tuck through the game as expected. These two teams were even all year and it took until the final 7 tenths of a second to get a winner. Hunter Barr caught an inbounds lob from side out and layed it in at the buzzer to give the Tigers a 47-46 win. Finally, the 12th district atmosphere was as wild as expected. Maybe a little too wild in the opener as fans from Grayson and Edmonson were escorted from the gym by the police. When the dust settled on that one, Edmonson held up home court with an 11 point win over Grayson. Game 2 was an instant classic, as expected. Senior laden Whitesville Trinity led through the game but a huge 4th quarter by Ty Price was just too much for the Raiders. Trinity took a 1 point lead with under 2 minutes, but Price calmly came down the floor and buried a 3 to put the Bears in front for good. There is only one team left to punch their ticket to the Sportscenter next week. Owensboro hosts Daviess County tonight in the Devils Den. Should be a fun one!

It's district tournament time in the region. The whole season has looked to be a 3 team race but Butler County is trying to throw it's hat in the ring late in the season. With leading scorer Ty Price, the Bears are a team with a high ceiling. Ohio County is sitting in the best place, as they have already clinched their spot in the regional tournament with a first round bye. Owensboro is the the first round team to watch. They enter the tournament on a 3 game losing streak while Daviess County comes into the week with some momentum. 9th District (at Owensboro) - #1 Owensboro Catholic vs #4 Apollo - The Aces won both meetings by an average margin of 28. Expect Apollo to be a little closer for round 3 but not close enough. If the Aces can limit Zjahn Tutt, Apollo will struggle to find another scorer to keep pace. PREDICTION - Aces by 15 #2 Owensboro vs #3 Daviess County - While Owensboro won both regular season meetings by a margin of 22 ppg, Daviess County comes into the postseason with some momentum. The Devils should win this game comfortably but have not found their rhythm since Ji Webb entered the lineup. If the Panthers can hit some outside shots, they can keep it interesting but Owensboro should be too much for the Panthers. PREDICTION - Devils by 8 10th District (at Mclean County) - #2 Mclean County vs #3 Muhlenberg County - While Muhlenberg has played a much tougher schedule than Mclean, the Mustangs have been unable to translate that into wins against equal competition. Mclean will be the clear favorite in this one as they won both meetings in the regular season. The Cougars won the first by 30, but only won the second by 7. PREDICTION - Cougars by 10 11th District (at Cloverport) - #1 Hancock County vs #4 Cloverport - Hancock comes in as a double digit favorite and should be too much for the Aces. PREDICTION - Hornets by 30 #2 Meade County vs #3 Breck County - this game is a bit of a toss up. Breck won the first meeting by 7 while Meade came back and won the 2nd meeting by 6. Breck has shown a better ability to compete against tougher opponents, but Meade won their last 2 district games against Breck and Hancock. Meade has never lost a district elimination game under Coach Jason Tripure. He has won every single one since 2015. PREDICTION - Waves by 1 12th District (at Edmonson County) - #1 Edmonson County at #4 Grayson County - Edmonson won both meetings by an average margin of 12 ppg. Grayson has the talent to win the game but winning at Edmonson County will be a challenge. PREDICTION - Wildcats by 5 #2 Butler County vs #3 Whitesville Trinity - This is the best match up of the entire first round. Trinity won the first meeting by 2 while Butler won the 2nd meeting in overtime, by 5. Landon Huff has been a 20 ppg player over the last few weeks of the regular season while Ty Price is one of the best scorers in the state at nearly 32 ppg. Lawson Rice vs Landon Smith should be a great paint matchup. The Raiders will want to keep him out of foul trouble. PREDICITON - Bears by 2 1.Owensboro Catholic Aces (25-4) – SAME Wins – Breck Co, Losses - Evansville Reitz, IN The Aces finished their regular season with a tough one point loss to a good Evansville Reitz team. They head into district time with the best record in the region and only one loss inside the region, to Ohio County. They have signature wins over Bowling Green, Evansville Memorial and Owensboro twice. Brian Griffith leads the team at 21.2 ppg. 2.Ohio County Eagles (23-7) – SAME Wins - Owensboro, Losses - South Warren The Eagles got a nice regional win over Owensboro on Tuesday to remain undefeated in 3rd Region Play. They just don't have the overall body of work that the Aces have on the regular season. Elijah Decker leads the team with 17.3 ppg and nearly 8 boards per contest. 3.Owensboro Red Devils (14-10) – SAME Losses- Ohio County The Devils had their regular season finale against Henderson canceled on Friday, meaning they will head to the post season with 3 straight losses. They have not found their groove all season, but maybe tournament time will focus their talent. Kenyatta Carbon leads the team with 21.7 ppg. 4.Butler County Bears (20-9) – UP 1 Wins – Ft Campbell & Mclean County The Bears head into postseason play having won 8 of their last 10. They feature one of the best 1-2 punches in the region in Ty Price and Lawson Rice. Price is putting up 31.4 ppg while Lawson Rice leads the region with 11.6 boards per contest. 5.Mclean County Cougars (21-8) - DOWN 1 Wins – Hopkins Central, Losses - Butler County The Cougars closed the season winning 7 of 9 but did drop a regional contest against Butler County to close the season. Jaxon Floyd has really played well over the past couple of week, upping his average to 16 ppg. 6.Hancock County Hornets (16-11) – SAME Wins - Grayson County, Losses - Henderson County The Hornets have won 5 of 6 and finally seem to be playing their best basketball of the year at the right time. Their only loss over the last 2 weeks was to a very good Henderson team. Kaleb Keown is sitting at 16 ppg to lead the Hornets this season. 7.Edmonson County Wildcats (16-12) – SAME Wins – Russellville, Losses - Breck County The Cats have lost 3 of 4 ahead of district time. The good news is, they get to host the 12th. They are led by Braxton Highbaugh's 14 ppg. 8.Whitesville Trinity Raiders (14-13) – UP 1 Losses – Lyon County & Todd Central The Raiders had an impressive showing against Lyon County through 3 quarters but Travis Perry was too much in the 4th. The second half of the season has been a struggle, as the Raiders only went 5-9 since mid January. Senior Landon Huff has led the team down the stretch. He is scoring 16 ppg to lead the team. 9.Daviess County Panthers (13-14) – UP 1 Wins – Grayson County & Union County The Panthers come into the postseason on a groove, having won 4 of 5. Gage Phelps is sitting at 18 ppg. 10.Breckinridge County Tigers (10-16) – UP 1 WIns - Edmonson County, Losses – Owensboro Catholic The Tigers have been inconsistent all season but have shown the ability to compete with anyone in the region. Hunter Barr Leads the Tigers with 16 points and 9 board per contest on the season. 11.Grayson County Cougars (8-17) – UP 2 Wins - Meade County, Losses - Daviess County & Hancock County The Cougars enter the postseason having lost 6 of 7. Senior River Blanton leads the team with 14.4 ppg. 12.Meade County Greenwave (8-18) – DOWN 3 Losses - Grayson County, North Bullitt & Fairdale The Waves followed their 4 game win streak by closing the season on a 5 game losing streak. Garrett Hardesty leads the team with 13.4 ppg. 13.Apollo Eagles (5-22) - UP 1 Wins - Muhlenberg County Apollo got a regional win over Muhlenberg to avoid going winless in the region this season. Zjahn Tutt leads the team with 14.6 ppg. 14.Muhlenberg County Mustangs (6-22) – DOWN 2 Losses - Apollo & Hopkinsville The Mustangs are limping into the postseason having lost 5 of 6. Madox Jernigan & Kanyon Johnson leads the team with 13.5 ppg while Kadin Ray is 2nd in the region in rebounding at 10.5 boards per contest. 15.Cloverport Aces (7-21) – SAME Wins- Foundation Christian, Losses - Ft Knox The Aces finished the season with 7 wins! Cole Weatherholt led the team with 14 ppg. REGULAR SEASON SCORING LEADERS 1. Ty Price - Butler County - 31.4 2. Kenyatta Carbon - Owensboro - 21.7 3.Brian Griffith - Owensboro Catholic - 21.2 4. Lawson Rice - Butler County - 18.5 5. Gage Phelps - Daviess County - 18 6. Elijah Decker - Ohio County - 17.3 7. Landon Huff - Whitesville Trinity - 16 8. Jaxon Floyd - Mclean County - 15.9 9. Kaleb Keown - Hancock County - 15.7 10. Hunter Barr - Breck County - 14.9

Presuming they do not get upset in the Regional Tournament, Warren Central looks to have gotten a pretty nice path to the championship. The bottom half of the bracket is loaded.

The 12th District held their draw today... #1 Edmonson Co vs #4 Grayson County & #2 Butler County vs Whitesville Trinity

@Runcible Owl you ask a REALLY good question? I have been watching Apollo basketball since I was born, and they have never had a stretch like this before. Its been rough and it is really hard to put a finger on exactly what it is? The talent just isn't there. It's hard to place the blame in any one place. Some of it is a shift in county demographics with a lot of kids now going to Daviess County instead of Apollo. Some of it was a breakdown in the youth programs that fed into Apollo. A lot of the folks who ran the programs just got older, and moved on. Unfortunately, a few years went by without anyone picking them up. I also think the instability in the program, that started when they ran off Steve Barker, caused a lot of potential transfers to look elsewhere. I do think there will be some changes on the way at the end of the season, but without folks rallying around the program at all levels, it is not going to matter who the Coach is. Hopefully, the incoming freshman can be the group that starts to bring the program back around.