Ballfan34

Highlands in a good one. Birds and Sam Vinson will have to step up their game defensively if they want to win this one. Ultimately though, I believe Sam and his shooters will be to much for Lex Cath to handle.

Mitch Rylee is what they are missing, it’s a shame too.

I believe Holy Cross and Dixie will both be dangerous, especially after seeing both playing Highlands and St. Henry extremely tough. However, I still believe HHS and St. Henry have the best chance at Cov Cath, including Beechwood, if they have a great shooting night!

Dixie looked really good tonight. Played on both ends, and ran their offense well while getting open looks. Highlands was just to much to handle with Vinson. Birds are good, but have to improve on the defensive side of the ball if they want any chance at winning the region...

How does one get so many chances to transfer back and fourth? Lol 😂

Did not think Dixie would have have beat Conner down this bad. Anyone have any details?

9th Region Rankings Week 1 1.Covington Catholic Head Coach: Scott Ruthsatz District 35 Current Record: 3-0 The Colonels stay at #1 after the first week of action across the 9th region. Cov Cath handled Cooper, Dixie, and Ryle pretty easily in all 3 of the contest winning by 25+ in each. They have been lead by Beechwood transfer Mitchell Rylee with 16.0 PPG through the first 3 games while bringing down 7.3 RPG. I've watched bits and clips of the Colonels play this season and the seem just as dominate as they were last season. Chandler Starks and Donovan Stocks have been there usual selves to start off the season, but the biggest surprise to me was to see how well the young sophomore Evan Ipsaro has performed. Ipsaro has been able to put up 12.0 PPG while shooting 6/8 from 3 point land, he reminds me a lot of Disken from last year and will be a pest! Colonels have a busy schedule this week as they take on North Laurel tonight, while testing their luck over in Cincinnati as they take on Turpin and Indian Hill after. 2. St. Henry Head Coach: Dave Faust District 34 Current Record: 2-1 The Crusaders jump up to #2 in the rankings after they handed Highlands their first loss of the season in a close game. Wyatt Veith's last second 3 to tie the game about forced OT, until Cody Teeten stole the inbound pass with 1 second left and scored a layup to win! St. Henry also traveled down to Lexington and took on Lexington Catholic where Jude Bessler forced overtime on a last second 3, but came up just short over a top ranked squad in the state of Kentucky. The Crusaders are a scrappy bunch who play well together, lead by Veith who has scored 23.3 PPG and Bessler at 17.0 PPG. This team will be tough to beat! 3. Highlands Head Coach: Kevin Listerman District 36 Last season: 1-1 Bluebirds go down to spot 3 in my rankings because of their loss to St. Henry. Free-throws during crunch time hurt Highlands, but credit is due as St. Henry is ranked above them! Birds have been lead by reigning 9th region player of the year Sam Vinson who has averaged 24.0 PPG. This team plays fast and shoots the ball very well. Sophomore Will Herald has been extremely hot from 3 point land shooting 10/14 in just 2 games of action! The Birds hosted the Ashland Blazers who were currently on a 33 game winning streak before they ran came to the OVEN! Highlands takes on Dixie Thursday this week and then will get a crack at the Lex-Cath Knights Sunday! 4. Beechwood Head Coach: Erik Goetz District 35 Current Record: 3-0 The Tigers stay at 4 after they have recorded a 3-0 record against the competition they have played. The Brossart Munstangs played them tough, Scotty Draud was to much to handle scoring 20 points in the game and evenly distributed points between Rolf & Downtown both at 9 a piece for the game. Grant County and Dohn Community (Cincinnati, Ohio) weren't able to stop the Tigers either as they handled each team pretty easily. Draud leads the team in scoring at 23.3 PPG and field goal percentage at 65.0%. They start off the All "A" Classic tomorrow against Villa Madonna at 7:00 PM. 5. Conner Head Coach: Matthew Otte District 33 Current Record: 2-0 The Cougars were able to handle the Holy Cross Indians 59-42. Spencer Couzins has been leading the team in scoring at 20 PPG. This Conner team is very balanced and they have 7 players averaging 5+ PPG. Conner also took care of business against a tough Boone County team 76-58. The Cougars take on Dixie tonight at 7:30 PM, this game will tell us a lot about each team! 6. Holy Cross Head Coach: Brandon Grammar District 35 Current Record: 1-2 The Holy Cross Indians took a tough loss to Conner last week. On the bright side for the Indians, they were without one of their better players from last season Brandon McClendon. Sophomore Jacob Meyer is leading the Indians at 25.0 PPG and Jeremiah Hicks is leading the team in rebounding at 7.7 RPG. The Indians had a very impressive win against CAL, Meyer went off for a 40 ball! The Indians are taking on Newport in the 9th Region All "A" Classic tonight as I type! 7. Dixie Heights Head Coach: Roger S. Stainforth, II District 34 Current Record: 2-1 The red colonels ran into the blue colonels last week and lost 71-46. However, they got big wins over Ryle and Harrison County! Leading the team is Billy Wogenstahl at 17.3 PPG and 8.0 RPG. Dixie takes on Conner tonight at Conner @ 7:30. This should be a good ball game! Dixie also takes on Highlands Thursday and Villa Madonna Saturday! 8. Cooper Head Coach: Tim Sullivan District 33 Last Season: 1-2 Cooper took down the Simon Kenton Pioneers 59-50 where Jacob Deere put some damage on the scoreboard at 20 points! However, the Jaguars struggled mightily against Covington Catholic and Bryan Station. COVID-19 cancels the ball game tonight against Lloyd according to "scoreboard.12dt.com". Would have been a big game for both programs! 9. Newport Central Catholic Head Coach: Ron Dawn District 36 Current Record: 2-1 The Newport Central Catholic Thoroughbreds opened up an impressive start to the season beating Newport by 20+ and beating Scott 54-45. However, they ran into CAL and ended up losing by 10. On the season Joel Iles is leading the team in 19.7 PPG and 6.7 RPG. Ross Pangallo has been out with injury, and when he is healthy, this team will be tough! They face off against St. Henry in the 9th Region All "A" Classic tomorrow @ 7:30 PM. 10. Lloyd Memorial Head Coach: Michael Walker District 34 Current Record: 2-1 The Juggernauts have a solid district win against Villa Madonna and another great win against Boone County! Leading the team in PPG is Zaire Monroe at 16.0 PPG and leading the team in RPG is Jeremiah Israel at 9.0 RPG. Lloyd's game tonight against Cooper seems to be canceled, but they play this Friday against Ryle, that one should be a good matchup between #10 and #11 ranked teams! 11. Ryle Head Coach: Keaton Belcher District 33 Current Record: 2-2 The Ryle Raiders started off the season playing against 2 great teams Cov-Cath and Dixie and put up a fight against Dixie, but wasn't enough losing 81-64. However, they have gotten back on track against Central Kentucky HomeSchool and Nicholas County. Donovan Robinson and Tyler Bush have been leading the team in points at 20.0 PPG for Robinson and 16.2 PPG for Bush! They are currently taking on Holmes tonight and will ply Lloyd this Friday! 12. Holmes Head Coach: Bradford Carr District 35 Current Record: 2-1 The Bulldogs beat Ludlow and Bracken County each by 20+, but fell in a close one to the Scott Eagles! This team has been lead by Eian Elmer at 14.7 PPG and Quantez Calloway at 13.5 PPG. This team will be a hard team to beat after playing the rough part of their schedule! They play Ryle tonight in a very intriguing matchup between 2 solid teams and then play Lexington Catholic Saturday! 13. Boone County Head Coach: Nathan Browning District 33 Current Record: 1-2 The Boone Country rebels played both Conner and Lloyd tough IMO even though they lost! Leading the way for the Rebels is Parker Fields at 19.3 PPG and Cole Shumate at 13.7 PPG. Boone also took a win over Model 75-55! This week Boone County takes on SK tonight, and then play Gallatin County Friday! However, their game against Dayton is cancelled that was scheduled for Saturday! 14. Newport Head Coach: Rod Snapp District 36 Current Record: 1-1 The Newport Wildcats lost to NCC to open up their season, but then battled back through adversity after COVID-19 cancelled their game against East Jessamine and beat a tough Ludlow team 55-48!Leading the team is Alex Greene at 15.5 PPG and KeAndre Nelson at 13.0 PPG. The Wildcats play tonight against Holy Cross in the 9th Region All "A" Classic! 15. Ludlow Head Coach: Dan Sullivan District 34 Current Record: 1-2 The Ludlow Panthers have started the season off with a 1-2 record losing to Newport and Holmes! However, they were able to get a big Win against Heritage Academy 90-59. Leading the way is Noah Hoffmeister at 17.0 PPG. Ludlow takes on Bellevue this Saturday! 16. Dayton Head Coach: Ron Kinmon District 36 Current Record The Dayton Green Devils started off the season on the right foot beating Covington Latin 89-21. They battled Calvary Christain but ended up losing 61-46 and took another loss against a good Pendleton County team 66-53! This team will sadly have to sit out there next 3 games due to COVID-19 according to the stats website I use! 17. Villa Madonna Head Coach: Trevor Gould District 34 Current Record: 2-2 The Villa Madonna Vikings lost 2 in a row to Lloyd and Grant County, but then battled back and beat Bellevue 2 times in a row! Leading the team in points is Martin Dominic at 10.7 PPG! They take one Beechwood tomorrow and Dixie Saturday! 18. Bellevue Head Coach: Jim Hicks District 36 Current Record: 0-4 The Bellevue Tigers are currently winless on the season as they have battled Pendleton County, Villa Madonna, and Williamstown! The leading scorer for the Tigers is Derek Leedy at 10 PPG! Bellevue takes on Lawrenburg from Indiana Thursday and then play Ludlow on Saturday @ 2:00 PM! 19. Heritage Academy Head Coach: Jerry Miles District 33 Current Record: 0-1 Heritage Academy took a tough loss to Ludlow 90-59, and have not been able to play because of COVID-19! Hopefully they will be able to come out on top against St. Patrick when they Friday! 20. Covington Latin Head Coach: Joe Hornback District 35 Current Record: 0-2 Covington Latin lost 2 games last week against Dayton and Portland Christain! Leading the team is Andrew Apollonio with 9.5 PPG! The Trojans take on Bluegrass United Friday @ 7:30 PM!

IMO, who in their right mind would want to take over this program? The fans LITERALLY ran BW out of town after being loyal for over 20+ years, his time was probably up but still so much hate was thrown at him. Way to much pressure taking over the program. The fans have your back, until you can’t get your team to perform. I guess it’s just like any other coaching position, but I feel like Highlands fans want something that is not realistic with the talent. Maybe the talent is there, but the head coach isn’t the solution IMO. Yeah it may be a step in the right direction. But let’s face it, the coach and his staff are not the ones out there competing. It comes down to the players, and Coach Eddie probably saw the bodies he had to work with and revoked his decision in a terrible manner, but it is what it is. As long as the new coach brings in a good culture, that the kids can get behind, the Birds will be as good as they were under BW. But if the players want to stop being subpar and losing to Covington Catholic, they have to figure it out themselves and put in the work. “Coach is as good as his players”. If you don’t believe in this quote then look at what happened to Cov Cath. AJ Mayer, Michael Mayer, and Kam Butler left after dominating for so many years and they came back down to earth and lost to Bowling Green by ALOT. Say what you want to say about the talent and coaching in Fort Thomas, but it’s going to come down to who works the hardest in the off-season. I personally think that the hiring committee not only has to hire a new head coach, but a team nutritionist/strength and conditioning coach who knows what they are doing! But what do I know ?? Go Birds

I have not kept updated on this thread since the job opened originally. Don’t really feel like reading 48 pages of this stuff. Anyone want to write me a quick summary of what’s happened 😂?

I think atleast 30.

84-75 Birds Final!

59-50 about 1:30 left in the 3rd

40-28 Birds at Half

Vinson with a DEEP 3

Birds up 15-2 with 4 minutes left in 1st. Everyone can shoot on the floor.

I think Highlands will win if they play good defense. There’s no doubt in my mind they will be able to shoot and put up points. But this Ashland team will be able to score at will if the Birds played like they did last year at the beginning of season on defense.

Thank you, Holy Cross will be a very dangerous team with Robinson!

They will be good for years to come, there is a lot it the pipeline for Coach Listerman and HHS!

With basketball approaching and not much to look forward too till January because of Covid-19. I thought I’d go ahead and write my rankings for the region along with the players. First off, I’d like to give a shout out to all the players and coaches for facing adversity head on with an unorthodox season like this year! I am truly hoping this season happens because of all the work these guys have put in, it will truly be a shame if the season doesn’t happen! Here are how the teams fan out IMO! 1. Covington Catholic Head Coach: Scott Ruthsatz District 35 Last Season: 29-5 9th Region Champions It’s only right to keep the winners of the 9th region last season as #1. Covington Catholic brings a ton of talent back including smooth 2 guard Donovan Stocks (Senior). Stocks averaged 8.9 points and 3.3 rebounds last season all while shooting 48% from behind the arc! It will be no surprise to me when Donovan starts to get college looks and offers, if he hasn’t already! Chandler Starks (Sophomore)will be the next big piece in Covington Catholics army! Starks standing at 6’6 was able to take over games with his physicality and motor. I don’t think Chandler gets enough credit for his high basketball IQ, it seemed he always made the right play last season. Everyone knows by now he will be a problem the next 3 years. As I was writing this article I thought I was missing someone, and that player was Transfer Mitchell Rylee (Junior). As a Beechwood Tiger, Rylee averaged 8.9 PPG and 6.9 RPG. While standing at 6’6 Rylee has springs for feet and is a put back machine. Covington Catholics front court will be scary this upcoming season with Starks and Rylee! Reece Murphy (Senior) will be taking charge of these guys and running the show. Murphy provided spirts of energy and defensive stops when needed last year backing up Grant Disken. He averaged 3.6 PPG last season off the bench and shot 42.9% from the field. He is more then capable of leading the colonels to another 9th region championship. Next up in this long list of colonels is Colin McHale (Junior). I have seen McHale play a couple of times, and every time I see him he always rises up and has an amazing dunk! Look for McHale to improve his 2.9 PPG from last season, he will be a key piece if the Colonels want to repeat! Walker Horn (Junior), son of NKU Basketball Head Coach, will be making some noise this season with the colonels. He is a savvy little player who will make all the right decisions and is more then capable from beyond the arc! Look for him to improve his points per game as well! Cov Cath indeed has 2 more transfers coming in this season that I almost forgot about. Brothers, John Ipsaro (Senior) and Evan Ipsaro (Sophomore) come in to Covington Catholic both looking to make an impact right away. I have heard that the sophomore will be a problem the next few years to come and may be a starter! All in all, the colonels should be another force to reckon with this season! 2. Highlands Head Coach: Kevin Listerman District 36 Last season: 28-4 9th Region runner-up The Bluebirds made a run at the 9th region championship last year, but were defeated by Covington Catholic 59-54 at BB&T Arena! The Bluebirds return 3 starters including senior 9th region player of year Sam Vinson! He is committed to play basketball at Northern Kentucky University and I wouldn’t be surprised if he averages a triple double this season. He can do so much on the floor and makes his teammates around him so much better. He will have a load of shooters around him too! Starting with their first shooter and other returner Luke Muller! Muller may be the best shooter in the state, he can stroke it from anywhere in from the volleyball line. If you watched him play last season, you know I am not joking. Look for Muller to expand his scoring elsewhere while increasing his numbers from last year. The other returning starter from last year is Bryson Cody. Cody averaged 4.7 PPG along with 2.2 rebounds, he will be a key glue player in this years squad, look for him to expand his numbers. 2 upcoming Juniors who contributed last year at the varsity level as sophomores were Zach Barth and Oliver Harris. Barth was the teams 4th leading scoring coming off the bench while averaging 5.4 PPG and shooting 44.3% from behind the arch. Harris came off the bench last year and was a very efficient scorer shooting 53.4% from the floor while averaging 4.8 PPG. Harris stands at 6’4 and has added some muscle this off-season to contribute, I expect for him to make a huge jump this season. Junior Transfer Leyton Read comes in from Covington Catholic. Read will be another one of Vinson’s shooters as he will be a very nice addition onto this Highlands team. No numbers from last year at the varsity level for Read, but anyone who saw him play at JV level at Cov Cath knows he can play! The last main shooter for this Highlands team is incoming sophomore Will Herald! Herald hit 12/22 threes last year for the bluebirds when he came off the bench last year as a freshman for certain situations! I would not be surprised if Herald ends up starting this season, he can flat out stroke it! Highlands will be a very dangerous team this year and they are my pick to win the 9th region! 3. St. Henry Head Coach: Dave Faust District 34 Last Season: 25-5 9th Region Semi-Finalist The Crusaders are will be a team in the hunt to make it to Rupp this season and their leader will be Senior Wyatt Veith! He can score at all 3 levels and averaged 18.4 PPG last season while grabbing 5.9 RPG. Veith is committed to play ball at Thomas Moore University and will be one of the top players in the region! Alongside of Veith will be Senior Jude Bessler who averaged 14.1 PPG and grabbed 6.2 RPG last season! Bessler is a very strong big man and who plays with an extremely high motor! He will be a huge piece of St. Henry wants to win the 9th Region! The Crusaders also bring back another big man in Cody Teten who was their 4th leading scorer at 5.8 PPG and brought down 3.0 RPG. Look for Teten to increase his numbers this season! Cory Shea will end up becoming the point guard for the Crusaders as he averages 3.0 PPG while shooting 38.1% from behind the arch! Ryan Butler & Reid Ravenscraft will also be key returners for St. Henry as Butler averaged 4.6 PPG and Ravenscraft averaged 3.8 PPG. This St. Henry team will be a scrappy bunch and will be a team to look out for come post season! 4. Beechwood Head Coach: Erik Goetz District 35 Last season: 21-12 9th Region appearance The Tigers bring back 2 of the top seniors in this 2021 class in Scotty Draud and Will Downtown. Draud has been a top player for Beechwood for 4 years now and will be looking to get a 9th region title. He averaged 22.9 PPG and 7.0 RPG last year as a junior. Downton averaged 10.2 PPG and brought down 3.9 RPG. Downton is one of the most exciting players in the region to watch because he springs for feet! Downton along with Draud will be looking to bring back a 9th region title back to Fort Mitchell, but they will need some help. The first person that comes to mind when you think of Beechwood recently is Cameron Hergott and hopeful Mr. Kentucky Football! Hergott averaged 3.2 PPG and 2.0 RPG. Cameron Decker and Will Rolf will also likely play key roles in Beechwood play this season, both averaged 4.0 PPG a season ago and were key players on last years squad. I think this team will turn some heads in the 9th region, and may even come out on top if they can have a timely tourney run! 5. Conner Head Coach: Matthew Otte District 33 Last Season: 23-6 9th Region Semi-Finals Notable Returners: Osterbure, Skies, Couzins, Saffel The Conner Cougars had one of their best season in a while, but ended up losing to Highlands in the Semi Finals of the 9th Region tournament last year. This team loses 3 great seniors in Scott, Hicks, and Bowles, but brings back 4 out of their top 6 scorers. One of the best shooters in the region will be Spencer Couzins who averaged 10.7 PPG while shooting 42.4% from behind the 3 Point Line. Look for Couzins to have taken his game to another level by being able to create his own shot off the dribble now that he will be go to scorer. Cougars also bring back Point Guard Riley Osterbur who averaged 10.2 PPG along with a 43.0% from behind the arch. Anyone who watched the Cougars last year knows he is a scrappy player, who will almost always make the right play. Returning for the Cougars at the big man position will be Cole Skies. Skies averaged 6.8 PPG while bringing down 5.4 RPG. Don’t be surprised if he ends up averaging a double-double this season, he’s strong and fundamentally sound. The last returner for the Cougars is Aiden Saffell who averaged 5.3 PPG on 56.7% from the field. He will be a guy the Cougars look to this season to play a huge role, I know he will play his role at a high level. I think this team will end up winning the 33 District Championship! Cougars could potentially make a run in the 9th region tournament, but they will have to be shooting the ball at a very high clip! 6. Holy Cross Head Coach: Brandon Grammar District 35 Last Season: 15-13 Notable Returners: Meyer, Hicks, & McClendon The Holy Cross Indians will be a force to be reckon with the next 3 seasons all because of Jacob Meyer. I didn’t believe all the hype just because he was a freshman, but when I saw him play for the first time... the kid just glides out there. He averaged 17.8 PPG a season ago while shooting 45.5% from the field. Also returning for the Indians will be Jeremiah Hicks who averaged 12.6 PPG while shooting a high 55.5% from the field. Hicks is built like a brick wall and will be an animal on the boards this year. He averaged 8.9 RPG and I expect him to average a double-double this season. The next key returner will be Brandon McClendon who averaged 13.8 PPG while shooting 51.8% from the field. McClendon is a level headed guard who will need to increase his 3-Point Shooting this season if Holy Cross wants to beat out Beechwood or Cov Cath. All in all I don’t see Holy Cross beating out the Colonels, but I could possibly see them beating out Beechwood if they play a good game! 7. Dixie Heights Head Coach: Roger S. Stainforth, II District 34 Last Season: 10-21 Notable Returners: Snelling, Geraci, Summe, Flynn, & Haigas. Dixie will be a very dangerous team this year as they have a whole lot of people returners who had decent averages. Ian Snelling will be at the center of it all as he averaged 17.4 PPG while shooting 49.9% from the field goal. He is a crafty guard who can score at all 3 levels and will be in conversation for a top player in the region! Keirnan Gercaci will also return as he averaged 13.9 PPG and brought down 4.9 RPG. He’s a nice high school player who will increase his numbers from last season! 8. Cooper Head Coach: Tim Sullivan District 33 Last Season: 11-17 9th Region Appearance Notable Returners: Gavin Rabe & Deere Although last years Coopers team wasn’t one that was as good as in years past. They were still a scrappy bunch and they bring back 2 DUDES and one of the best coaches in the 9th! Sullivan’s group will obviously play extremely hard and will get after you on the defensive end! They bring back leading scorer of last years squad Gavin Rabe averaging 15.4 PPG while shooting 33.3% from behind the arch. Rabe is a crafty guard who will be the leader of this team, and I see him improving his field goal percentage this year! Coming back with Rabe is his big man Jacob Deere who averaged 7.6 PPG while bringing down 4.0 RPG. I have Cooper ranked this high solely on coaching and these 2. Look for upcoming junior guard Teyon Neale to fill be inserted into the starting lineup with these 2 as he played in 27 games last season while averaging 1.4 PPG. There will be a handful of players fighting for spots, I think Coach Sulley will have this team improved by the end of the season! 9. Newport Central Catholic Head Coach: Ron Dawn District 36 Last Season: 16-10 Notable Returners: Ross Pangallo, Joel Iles, Kaedon Butts, & Preston Bagget. The Breds bring back upcoming Juniors Joel Iles and Ross Pangallo. Both were able to score at a high clip last season, Iles averaging 12.8 PPG while shooting 43.5% from behind the arch! Pangallo averaged 9.6 PPG while shooting 37.9% from behind the arch. This teams success will rely heavily on how these 2 play day in and day out! Look for Kaedon Butts and Preston Bagget to pick up where the former senior class left off! The Breds will need to beat out Newport in the tournament if they want to make it to region! 10. Lloyd Memorial Head Coach: Sam Volpenhein District 34 Last Season: 15-13 Notable Returners: Tyrese Davis, Zaire Monroe, Dameion Mitchell, & Jeremiah Israel. Lloyd Memorial Juggernauts are a pretty interesting team as they will bring back a lot of players from last years squad that contributed! One of the main scorers from last year was Tyrese Davis who averaged 10.4 PPG. Another returner who contributed lasts year was Zaire Monroe. Dameion Mitchell and Jeremiah Israel will also be coming back and both averaged above 5.0 PPG! This Lloyd team will have a shot at making the 9th region tournament, but they will have to beat out Dixie if they want to make a run! 11. Ryle Head Coach: Keaton Belcher District 33 Last Season: 12-17 Notable Returners: Donovan Robinson, Tyler Bush, & Graves Fryman. Ryle brings back 2 of their top players from last season, Donovan Robinson and Tyler Bush. Robinson averaged 13.3 PPG while shooting 37.8% from 3. Bush averaged 12.3 PPG while bringing down 2.8 RPG. Robinson is a solid point guard who can create his own shot and Bush has springs for feet. Coming back with them who will need to expand his role will be Graves Fryman who averaged 3.8 PPG while bringing down 3.5 RPG. This Ryle team will have to beat out Boone County and Cooper if they want to make the tournament. However, we have seen some crazy upsets in the 33rd District... 12. Newport Head Coach: Rodney Snapp District 36 Last Season: 15-15 9th Region Appearance Notable Returners: KeAndre Nelson, Alex Greene, Evan Snapp, & Robert Sanders. The Newport Wildcats, will have to beat out Highlands and Newport Central Catholic if they want to make the 9th region tournament and have a shot at Rupp. It will start with lefty KeAndre Nelson who averaged 12.5 PPG while shooting 50.4 % from the floor. Nelson will have help from returners Alex Greene and Evan Snapp. Both of which are crafty guards and can create their own shot. Newport will be coached well and very hard, I hope I can make it to a few games where Coach Snapp does his thing! 13. Holmes Head Coach: Bradford Carr District 35 Last Season: 11-17 Notable Returners: Quantez Calloway , Tayquan Calloway, & Eian Elmer The Holmes Bulldogs will have to beat out Beechwood and Holy Cross if they want to make a shot at playing in the 9th region tournament. They return both Calloway brothers who will both be seniors leading the way. Quantez was the main scorer on last years squad scoring 18.2 PPG while shooting 44.2% from the floor. Tayquan averaged 5.5 PPG while bringing down 2.4 RPG. Another returner for the Bulldogs will be Eian Elmer who averaged 7.9 PPG while shooting 47.9% from the field. This team will have to come together if they want to make a run and I hope they do because I love seeing Holmes where they belong! 14. Boone County Head Coach: Nathan Browning District 33 Last Season: 6-24 Notable Returners: Fields and Shumate The Boone County Rebels return 2 of their top scorers last year in Parker Fields and Cole Shumate. Fields averaged 12.2 PPG and brought down 5.3 RPG. I like Fields game a lot and I don’t think he gets enough credit, he’s a great high school player and I hope he gets a scholarship to play somewhere! Shumate will be the PG of the team as he averaged 9.0 PPG last season while bringing down 2.0 RPG. This team will have a shot at making the tournament, but they will have to beat out Cooper or Ryle! 15. Ludlow Head Coach: Dan Sullivan District 34 Last Season: 18-13 Notable Returners: Noah Hoffmeister, Liam Singer, and Ryan Gaiser. The Ludlow Panthers bring back 3 of their top 5 scorers from last year. Panthers go to guy this year will be PG Noah Hoffmeister as he averaged 12.0 PPG while shooting 48.4% from the floor. Another returner for the Panthers will be Forward Liam Singer who averaged 6.2 PPG while pulling down 4.0 RPG. The Panthers will have to beat out Dixie and Lloyd if they want to make it to the 9th region tournament! 16. Dayton Head Coach: Ron Kinmon District 36 Last Season: 12-20 Notable Returners: Lorenzo Price, Jordan Marksberry, & Braiden Comstick. Dayton brings back 2 of their top scorers in Lorenzo Price and Jordan Marksberry. Price averaged 14.7 PPG and brought down 7.5 RPG. Marksberry averaged 14.6 PPG and brought down 5.1 RPG. I think Dayton will have the edge over Bellevue this year because of these 2. Dayton will have to beat out Newport or NCC if they want a shot at making it to the 9th Region tournament! 17. Bellevue Head Coach: Jim Hicks District 36 Last Season: 3-25 Notable Returners: Will Strong, Logan Purnell, Derek Leedy, RJ Harris, & Derrick Turner. Bellevue returns 5 great players who all contributed at the varsity level last year as underclassmen! The leader of this group will be Junior guard Will Strong who averaged 10.9 PPG. If this group can come together and play good basketball as a team, they have a shot at beating Dayton and maybe beating out NCC or Newport! 18. Villa Madonna Head Coach: Nathan Dilts District 34 Last Season: 7-23 Notable Returners: Dominic Martin & Charlie Thiemann. Dominic Martin comes back as a senior this season along with Charlie Thiemann. Martin averaged 8.9 PPG while Thiemann averaged 5.4 PPG. Look for Villa Madonna to play a lot of team ball this year and hope to beat Ludlow, Dixie, or Lloyd! 19. Heritage Academy Head Coach: Jerry Miles District 33 Last Season: 7-19 Returners: Josh Wingham, Keegan Kennedy, & Nate Sicurella. Heritage returns 3 of their top 4 scorers from last season. Wingham, Kennedy, and Sicurella all averaged above 10 PPG! This Heritage team will have to beat out Boone, Cooper, or Ryle to have a shoot at making the 9the region tournament! 20. Covington Latin District 35 Last Season: 0-19 Returners: Andrew Apollonio & Alex Pham. No Stats Provided!

Ashland vs. Highlands on January 4th will tell us a lot about both teams! Will be a very good game!

I agree that it will be a fresh new start for HHS. However, it’s up to the players and how good they want to be. IMO coaching can only do so much. If you have ELITE players like mentioned above (Mayers, Butlers, McGinness, Coldiron, Pike, Etc.) you are going to win and make it to state titles. Everyone knows they put in the work, but they were gifted! In BW era, teams thought they were just going to walk in and be handed a state title because of what happened while they grew upon Fort Thomas... 7 state title appearances. Obviously the coaching staff probably made that a big ordeal. But players didn’t want to put in the work until it was to late. It’s a grind and Covington Catholic has made it their mission to kick Highlands butt since Eviston stepped in. Who knows, maybe this new coach will bring in a great culture and things will go back to normal.

I think you’re the first Covington Catholic guy to say that Highlands playing Cov Cath is their “Super Bowl” 😂😂

Why are you bringing up baseball buddy ? 😂😂

Say what you want , but Colonels should’ve showed up to play if that’s your excuse. It’s going to be a fun next few years !

Highlands top 2 lineman were out for the game, for everyone saying CovCath’s players were out 🥱