D Wolf

Tilghman might could host too but not sure if their bathroom situation is good enough. I really wish they’d use some of the high schools in the 1st region. Would be a much better atmosphere!!!

This will be a very brief semis preview. I’m writing this on my smartphone. I will be consistent with my previous rankings for the Final 4. 1-Marshall, 2-McCracken, 3-Murray, 4-Tilghman. There’s honestly not much separating the Top 3, and PT has been much better in the latter half of the season. Game 1 is at 1:00 and Game 2 follows. Game - McCracken vs Murray. The Mustangs are led by Region 1 POY Connor Miller and Jackson Klope. But Dylan Jackson also came up big in their win over Graves. The Tigers are led by their four seniors and they have very good size. I think Miller will be the best player on the floor so I’ll take McCracken in a tight one. McCracken 23, Murray 21. No, that’s not a halftime prediction - I think that will be the final score (maybe bring a crossword puzzle). Game 2 - Tilghman vs Marshall. The Marshals have been rolling and they are just finding ways to win. It can be a different guy each game - Staples, Langhi, Parker, Robertson. The Tornado will be missing their sharp-shooter Wilkins so the trio of Woodfork, Campbell and Williams will all need to have big games for PT to pull this one out. Williams in particular is a wild card. I’ve seen games where he’s dominant and also games where he has very little impact. I think this one is close for a while but the Marshals pull away in the 2nd half. sShould be some fun games!

I 100% agree with you that the regional winner will most likely be Marshall, McCracken or Murray. I think four of those other five teams could spring an upset but I’m not sure they could put three wins together over high quality teams.

Great week of basketball in the district tournament. I am going to first do a very brief ranking of the eight remaining teams, and then I will have a preview of the quarterfinal matchups. Here are my rankings of the remaining teams: 1. Marshall County (22-7) - this is a well-balanced team that is simply finding ways to win right now. 2. McCracken County (24-7) - the one/two punch of Senior Connor Miller and Sophomore Jackson Klope may be enough to lead them to Rupp Arena. 3. Murray (23-9) - a very narrow loss to the Marshals, and I think they led most of the way. This is a senior-led team that has a very good chance. 4 (tie). Mayfield (19-8) - this team just keeps getting better. They are capable of a big upset this week. 4 (tie). Paducah Tilghman (14-15) - they have some guys who are really playing well right now. My question for them is are they capable of strining together three wins in a row? 6. Graves County (20-10) - the Eagles have been on a slide the last part of the season, but this team also has several seniors who don't want their high school career to end. 7. Carlisle County (21-10) - Coach Oneil is crafty and he will have them ready to play this week. 8. Fulton County (6-23) - their mascot is the Pilots. Here is a preview of the quarters: Game 1 - McCracken County vs Graves County When: 6:00 Wednesday night Previous Matchup - McCracken Co. won 44-35 Connor Miller scored 21 points on 11 shots in the district finals, and he made some big plays down the stretch. Klope missed most of the 1st half with foul trouble but ended up with 14 points. The Eagles are led by two senior guards - Lukas Pigg and Briley VeuCasovic. I think that the Miller/Klope duo will be too much for the Eagles on Wednesday night. I like the Mustangs to move on to the semis. Game 2 - Carlisle County vs Murray When: 7:30 Wednesday night Previous Matchups - Murray won both. 1st game was 64-52 and the 2nd game was 60-33. Congrats to the Comets on winning the 1st District, but they got a really tough draw in the Murray Tigers. Murray has a very balanced scoring attack, and four of their top five scorers are seniors. The Comets are led by Carter Barnett and he scored 39 points in the district finals. I believe that Murray's size will be too much for the Comets in this one. However, Coach Oneil always seems to have a trick or two up his sleeve. I think this one could be close but I think the Tigers will move on. Game 3 - Mayfield vs Paducah Tilghman When: 6:00 Thursday night Previous Matchup - Mayfield won 65-61 You'll notice that I put these two teams as tied for 4th in the region. I just can't pick this one - I will call it a toss up. Mayfield is led by Senior Braydon Pate, and he is an excellent shooter. He makes three 3s per game, and shoots it better than 48%. Senior Braden Morris is also chipping in over 10 points per game. The Tornado is led by Sophomore Miles Woodfork, and he is scoring the ball really well right now. And both Josh Campbell and Omari Williams have been tough to deal with at the rim. I think this game could go either way. Game 4 - Marshall County vs Fulton County When: 7:30 Thursday night No previous matchup. I'm done calling Matthew Langhi a Freshman - he is now playing like a veteran. Langhi scored 20 points in their win over the Tigers Thursday night. The Marshals are quite balanced and Junior Alex Staples actually leads the team in scoring at 15 PPG. The Marshals should win this one pretty easily Thursday night.

Very brief: 1st District - Carlisle! 2nd District - PT is most likely without their shooter, Wilkins. And Mustangs swept them this year so I think the Mustangs take this one. 3rd District - is this one a toss up? Graves swept the Cardinals this year but the Eagles have kind of stumbled down the stretch. I’ll say the Eagles right the ship and are the 3rd champs. 4th District - I would say on a neutral floor this is a toss up. But the Tigers are hosting so I’ll take them over the Marshals. D Wolf

Thank you sweet16. I misread that one. I think that game most definitely gets more interesting I have also heard that Wilkins for PT may have an injury. Not sure as to his status for Tuesdays game. He’s their best outside shooter so that would be a big blow to the Tornado.

I first want to give a shout out to both McCracken's Connor Miller and Carlisle's Coach Brian Oneil who won the KABC Region 1 Player and Coach of the Year. Both very well deserved. Miller is an athletic combo guard who can shoot it, and also score at the rim. He and Jackson Klope were an awesome 1-2 punch for the Mustangs this year. Coach Oneil has long been thought to be one of the best coaches in this region, and the Comets have had an excellent season. I will give a quick rankings, and then I will preview the Top 3 District semifinal games for this week (sorry 1st District fans): 1. Calloway Co. (17-10) - L 59-87 at Lyon Co. 2. McCracken Co. (22-7) 3. Murray (22-8) 4. Marshall Co. (20-7) - W 69-57 at Madisonville 5. St. Mary (20-10) - W 89-65 vs CFS 6. Tilghman (13-14) - W 73-56 vs Caldwell Co. 7. Mayfield (17-8) 8. Graves Co. (20-9) 9. Carlisle Co. (19-10) 10. Ballard Co. (8-22) 11. CFS (9-21) 12. Fulton Co. (5-21) 13. Hickman Co. (5-16) 14. CCA (8-22) 15. Fulton City (6-22) Best Game - #1 Calloway Co. vs #4 Marshall Co. When - Tuesday at 7:30. Where - Murray High. Previous Matchups - 1/19 - Marshall 66 Calloway 61, 2/9 - Calloway 58 Marshall 53 I know I sound like a broken record, but it's a crying shame that one of these two teams will not make the CFSB Center next week. I don't think anyone could say that these are not two of the Top 5 teams in this region. I think that this game will most likely come down to the wire, and I think I will give a slight edge to the Lakers. The Lakers have an awesome Junior trio of Eli Finley (24 PPG), Jonah Butler (17 PPG & 10 RPG), and Conner Lockhart (14 PPG). That's an average of 55 points per game between these three players. The Marshals are led by Alex Staples (15 PPG) and Freshman Matthew Langhi (12 PPG). I think that the Marshals have a more balanced team and they definitely like to score at the rim more than the Lakers do. The Lakers are a prolific three-point shooting team as they make the most 3s per game in this region at 8.7. If you're in the Murray area this Tuesday you won't want to miss this one! 2nd Best Game - #5 St. Mary at #6 Paducah Tilghman. When - Tuesday at 7:30 . Where - Otis Dinning Gym (PT). Previous Matchups - 12/12 - PT 83 St. Mary 69, 2/6 - St. Mary 60 PT 52 A quick check of the KHSAA roster website shows that Tilghman has an enrollment of 882, and St. Mary's is 93. However, the Vikings have assembled a heckuva basketball team led by Owen Mikel (20 PPG), Luke Sims (19.5 PPG) and Aidan Hahn (12 PPG). They also have several other solid role players around them - most of these are seniors. Tilghman is led by Sophomore Miles Woodfork (19 PPG), Ahmad Wilkins (15.5 PPG) and Josh Campbell (11 PPG). There is quite a contrast in styles between these two teams as the Vikings are an excellent shooting team and the Tornado would rather work the ball inside. How about this stat - Mikel and Sims have made 154 three-pointers this year and the entire Tornado team has only made 139. The Tornado was in complete control in the first home game, and the Vikings won the second game pretty easily (Woodfork for PT missed that game due to illness). I think this game will come down to if Tilghman can keep Mikel/Sims/Hahn in check, and that is not an easy task. I think the Tornado has stepped their defense up a little in the last few weeks of the year, and we will see if this can continue on Tuesday night. I think I would give the Vikings a slight edge if this one was on the Holy Hardwood, but I'm tempted to give PT a slight edge since this one is at home for them. This one should also be a good one! 3rd Best Game - #10 Ballard Mem. at #7 Mayfield. When - Tuesday at 7:30. Where - Mayfield. Previous Matchups - 1/2 - Mayfield 62 Ballard Mem. 55, 1/26 - Mayfield 54 Ballard Mem. 45 These two had some competitive games this season, and I need to congratulate Jace Birney on becoming the Bombers all-time leading scorer (boys and girls). And he's only a Junior. Birney is scoring 26 points per game this year, but no other Bomber is averaging more than seven. Mayfield is led by Braydon Pate who scores 13 points per game and shoots 48% from downtown (he makes three 3s per game). I think the Cardinals should have the edge in this game, especially since they are hosting this tourney. However, if Birney gets really hot I think this could be a clos one.

It’s my understanding that Miller just missed a couple games due to illness. I think he is back unless there is something I haven’t heard about.

How about those Mustangs! An impressive win (short-handed) at Murray resulted in the #2 spot for them this week. Key Games this week: Tues - Ballard Mem. at Calloway, Marshall at Madisonville Thurs - Calloway at Lyon Co. (Region 1 GOTW), Caldwell at Tilghman Here are this week's rankings: 1. Calloway Co. (16-9) - W 75-45 at Mayfield, W 72-63 vs Tilghman, L 55-56 vs Christian Co. A little disappointed in the home loss to Christian County, but this Calloway team is 13-2 since the return of Eli Finley. The dynamic Junior trio of Finley, Butler and Lockhart are scoring more than 56 points per game. 2. McCracken Co. (22-7) - W 33-32 at Muray, W 67-60 vs Marshall Co. The victory at Murray was without their leading scorer, Connor Miller. After some missed FTs by Murray, Freshman PG Jay Martin drove the length of the floor for the 33-32 win (are we sure they played 4 quarters???). Remember that this is a pretty young team by McCracken's standards. Out of their top 7 scorers - only three are Juniors and Seniors (Miller, Dylan Jackson, and Grayson Parrish). 3. Murray (22-8) - L 32-33 vs McCracken Co., W 60-33 at Carlisle Co. After the tough loss to the Mustangs, the Tigers went to Carlisle and got an easy victory. As opposed to the Mustangs this is a veteran squad - 4 of their top 5 scorers are Seniors. I expect these Tigers to make a good run in the regional tourney. 4. Marshall Co. (19-7) - W 69-60 vs Webster Co., L 60-67 at McCracken Co., W 63-55 at St. Mary It's still hard for me to believe that one of Calloway or Marshall will not make the regional tourney. I guess that's just how the cookie crumbles sometimes. You better believe that the Lakers/Marshals semifinal game will be my GOTW next week! 5. St. Mary (19-10) - W 69-67 Trigg Co. (FedEx Forum), W 81-45 at CCA, L 55-63 vs Marshall Co. The Vikings had won eight in a row before their loss to the Marshals. This is a dangerous team for tourney time. 6. Paducah Tilghman (11-14) - W 79-72 vs UHA, L 63-72 at Calloway Co. It was good for the Tornado to get their leading scorer Woodfork back after missing a few games due to illness. He scored 25 in their nice win against University Heights. I'd also like to give a shoutout to Avery Thompson, who is one of the only 8th graders to contribute in the 1st Region this season. He's a heckuva football player too - I believe he already has an offer from the UK Wildcats. 7. Mayfield (15-8) - L 45-75 vs Calloway, W 57-50 at Caldwell Co. Two very good wins in sweeping Caldwell County in the last two weeks. 8. Graves Co. (19-9) - W 54-51 at Carlisle Co., L 47-50 at Caldwell Co. The Eagles were rolling, but then they lost the last three out of four. I still think this team could make a run in the regional tourney. With Pigg, Veucasovic, and Waller there is definitely some veteran talent on this team. 9. Carlisle Co. (18-10) - L 51-54 vs Graves Co., L 33-60 vs Murray Does anyone think the Comets will have any trouble in the 1st District tourney? Nah. I don't think so. 10. Ballard Mem. (8-21) - W 60-55 vs Trigg Co., W 68-29 vs Hickman I definitely think this team is better than their record shows. I expect that they'll give Mayfield a pretty good game next week at districts. 11. CFS (9-19) 12. Fulton City (6-22) 13. Fulton Co. (5-19) 14. CCA (8-20) 15. Hickman Co. (5-16)

I gotta get to a Super Bowl party, so this one may be sort of brief. Big-time congrats to the St. Mary Vikings with their first win over Tilghman since 2014. They had lost 26 straight, but they were determined to not make it 27! Key games this week: Tues - McCracken at Murray (Region 1 GOTW), Calloway at Mayfield, Graves at Carlisle Fri - Marshall at McCracken, Tilghman at Calloway Sat - Marshall at St. Mary 1. Murray (20-7) - W 50-46 at Marshall Co., W 95-68 vs CFS The Tigers locked up the super-important number one seed in the 4th District. This essentially means they will be in the Regional Tourney barring a monumental upset by CFS. This team seems to be hitting their stride. 2. Calloway Co. (14-8) - W 58-53 vs Marshall Co., W 74-64 Hopkinsville I honestly should probably do 1A and 1B here. I think there is a very good chance that these two teams see each other in the Regional finals. 3. McCracken Co. (20-7) - L 37-48 at Marion (IL), W 51-37 at Graves Co. The win at Graves was very impressive as they did it without their top-scorer Connor Miller. I think this is the team that has the best chance to ruin the 4th District party at the Regional tournament. They have an impressive guard in Miller, and Jackson Klope is a load down low. 4. Marshall Co. (17-6) - L 46-50 vs Murray, L 53-58 at Calloway Above I talked about a good chance that Murray and Calloway meet in the Regional Finals. But there's a chance the Lakers don't even GET to the Regional Tournament. Get your popcorn ready for Marshall and Calloway in the couple weeks. It will be a good one! 5. St. Mary (17-9) - W 60-52 vs Tilghman, W 80-49 vs Ballard Mem. This team started slow in December, but now they are rolling! Owen Mikel scored 27 in their big win on the Holy Hardwood Tuesday night. This team has three prolific shooters (Mikel, Sims, and Hahn) and they also have a bunch of others who rebound, screen, pass, and play solid D. 6. Graves Co. (18-8) - L 43-68 at Tilghman, L 37-51 vs McCracken Co. After such a great week of basketball last week - the Eagles followed that up with two clunkers. They looked like they were disinterested in the loss at Tilghman. But let's look on the bright side - the Eagles have the #1 seed in the Third District and they have already punched their ticket for Regionals. 7. Mayfield (14-7) W 63-49 vs Carlisle Co., W 66-56 vs Caldwell Co. A very nice win against the Comets. Do we think the Cardinals will have any trouble with Ballard in the district tourney? I can't decide. 8. Paducah Tilghman (10-13) - W 68-43 vs Graves Co., L 52-60 at St. Mary, W 82-44 at Crittenden Co., L 54-74 vs Warren Central. The Tornado looked like one of the top teams in the Region when they rolled the Eagles on Monday night. Then they struggled from the floor at St. Mary. The good news is that the rubber match will be at Otis Dinning - I think it will be a very close game. 9. Carlisle Co. (18-8) L 49-63 at Mayfield I was ready to move the Comets way up after their impressive win at McCracken last week. But then they followed that up with a loss to Ballard Memorial and also a loss this past week at Mayfield. I still think they will waltz through the 1st District Tourney. 10. Ballard Mem. (6-19) - L 57-74 vs UHA, L 49-80 at St. Mary Congratulations to Jace Birney who became the Bombers' all-time leading scorer! And I think he's only a Junior. 11. CFS (9-17) 12. Fulton Co. (3-18) 13. Hickman Co. (4-14) 14. CCA (7-17) 15. Fulton City (4-20)

Do you all like chaos? I know that I sure do! If the home teams in the 4th District matchups this week both win then Calloway, Marshall, and Murray will all have 4-2 records in the district. I don't know how the seedings would be decided (leave a reply if you know), but the #1 seed would play Christian Fellowship, who is winless in the distict and the #2 and #3 teams will battle it out for a trip to the regional tourney. Key games this week: Mon - Graves at Tilghman Tues - Murray at Marshall (co-Region 1 GOTW), Tilghman at St. Mary Fri - Marshall at Calloway (co-Region 1 GOTW), Mccracken at Graves, Carlisle at Mayfield, Ballard at St. Mary Sat - Calloway at Hopkinsville Here are my rankings: 1. Calloway Co. (12-8) - W 100-61 vs CFS, W 101-66 at CFS, W 50-42 at Murray The Lakers are 9-1 since the return of Eli Finley, and he is scoring 25 points per game. Excellent win at Murray handing them their first Region 1 loss of the season. 2. Murray (18-7) - L 42-50 vs Calloway Co. The Tigers can take the #1 seed in the 4th District if they can get the win at Marshall on Tuesday. This week I have two Games of the Week, and this is one of them. 3. Marshall Co. (17-4) - W 72-47 at Union Co., W 62-54 vs Tilghman The Marshals also control their destiny, but they must win both the home game Tuesday against Murray and also the Friday night away game at Calloway. Please know that there is not very much at all separating teams one through three in these rankings. 4. McCracken Co. (19-6) - L 53-55 vs Carlisle Co., W 63-56 vs Tilghman, W 60-47 vs Todd Co. Central I think that the Mustangs should stop scheduling Monday games. Last Monday they had a disappointing showing at University Heights, and this past Monday they lost a home game to Carlisle County. But they followed that up with a nice win over Tilghman on Friday night. 5. Graves Co. (18-6) - W 74-36 at Ballard Memorial, W 52-41 vs Mayfield, W 78-47 vs Trigg Co. A very nice week for the Eagles with a convincing win over the Bombers and also a district win over Mayfield. They have locked up the #1 seed for the 3rd District and that means that they will play in the regional tournament (it's a 3-team district). 6. Carlisle Co. (17-7) - W 55-53 at McCracken Co., W 67-26 vs Hickman Co., L 54-62 at Ballard Mem., W 64-39 vs CCA What a great win for the Comets over McCracken on Monday night! I was ready to move them up in these rankings, but they followed that up with a disappointing loss to the Bombers later in the week. I think this shows how even this region is this season. 7. Mayfield (11-7) - W 68-48 at Fulton Co., L 41-52 at Graves Co. An interesting game on Friday night when the Comets come to town. The Comets won the first matchup in the All A Classic, but I think this game could be a close one. 8. St. Mary (15-9) - W 86-57 at Fulton Co., W 66-43 vs CCA, W 60-48 vs Union Co. February 25th, 2014. That was the date that the Vikings last beat Tilghman - they have lost 26 straight since then. The Tornado comfortably won earlier this season at Otis Dinning, but I think this one will be a tight one. The Tornado is reeling right now, and if Sims and Mikel have solid games then I could see the Vikings pulling this one out. 9. Paducah Tilghman (8-11) - L 56-63 at McCracken Co., L 54-62 at Marshall Co. That's seven straight losses for the Tornado. Five of those losses were to teams #3 through #5 in these rankings, and then the other two were a loss to Webster County in the 2A Sectional Finals, and a disappointing home loss to Mayfield. If the Tornado wants to turn things around they need to put some focus into their defense - it has been very poor as of late. 10. Ballard Memorial (6-15) - L 36-74 vs Graves Co., W 62-54 vs Carlisle Co., L 64-85 at Massac Co. Jace Birney scored 27 points in the Bombers nice win over Carlisle. 11. Christian Fellowship (7-16) 12. Fulton Co. (3-16) 13. Fulton City (2-18) 14. Community Christian Acad. (5-17) 15. Hickman Co. (3-13)

This one surprised me quite a bit! A road win for the Comets, who have been improving a lot this year. The Mustangs have been very up and down as of late.

24Rocks - yes you are correct. 575 total enrollment

Under 575 per Adam Wells’ tweet (or X???)

This impacts several sports, but it was announced by the Murray AD that their enrollment has surpassed the level of single A in Ky (hat tip to Adam Wells of WPSD). The Tigers have won several Region 1 All A Classics in the past few years and I’m guessing there are some small schools around here who are happy to hear this news.

Friday February 2nd is a good rivalry night for the 1st Region. We've got Murray at Calloway, Mayfield at Graves, and PT at McCracken. I think the Mustangs should have the upper hand on the Tornado, but those other two games will be very interesting. Key games this week: Mon - Carlisle at McCracken Tues - Graves at Ballard Mem., Marshall at Union Co. Fri - Calloway at Murray (Region 1 GOTW), Mayfield at Graves, Tilghman at McCracken, Carlisle at Ballard Mem. Sat - Tilghman at Marshall Here are this week's rankings: 1. Murray (18-6) - All A Classic games - W 73-39 Williamsburg, W 50-32 Clinton Co., L 45-61 Evangel Christian A nice run to the semifinals of the All A Classic for the Tigers! Zayvion Carman is really playing well for the Tigers right now - he's averaging 11 points and 8 boards on the season. This is a team with a great deal of size, and I think they are able to over-power lots of teams. 2. Marshall Co. (15-4) - W 82-46 at CFS, W 59-58 at Tilghman I got a chance to see Matthew Langhi play, and he sure doesn't look like your typical Freshman. He is averaging 12 points and 5 rebounds on the year, and it seems like his production is increasing as the season goes. 3. Calloway Co. (8-8) - W 66-54 vs Graves Co. What an outstanding Junior class this Lakers team has led by Eli Finley and Jonah Butler. Finley is scoring 23 PPG, Butler is averaging 18 & 10, and Conner Lockhart is scoring 15 PPG. 4. McCracken Co. (17-5) - L 50-70 at UHA, W 59-53 at St. Mary, W 44-35 vs Graves Co., W 65-56 vs Christian Co. A tough loss to start the week - going on the road to University Heights is a tough task for any team. But the Mustangs followed that up with three wins. They can clinch the #1 seed in the 2nd District by taking care of the Tornado on Friday. Conner Miller is scoring 18 PPG, and Jackson Klope is averaging 16 & 11 for the Mustangs. 5. Graves Co. (15-6) - W 61-18 at Hickman Co., L 54-66 at Calloway Co., L 35-44 at McCracken Co. The Eagles can lock up the #1 seed in the 3rd District with wins this week over Ballard Memorial and Mayfield. That's important because I still think that the Bombers could be a dangerous team at tourney time. 6. Carlisle Co. (14-6) - W 89-36 vs Fulton City, W 85-41 at Fulton Co., W 69-30 at Fulton City, W 82-70 vs Trigg Co. Can we just go ahead and give the Comets the 1st District trophy? Those other three teams are going through some rebuilding years. Carter Burnett is making two 3s a game, and shooting over 42% from downtown. 7. Mayfield (10-6) - W 65-61 at Tilghman, W 54-45 vs Ballard Mem. I got a chance to see Braydon Pate play, and it was exactly what I expected - if he crosses half-court and has a little bit of space he will shoot it. And he's an excellent shooter! Pate made 6 of 10 against the Tornado, and the Cardinals got an excellent road win. I think they will give the Eagles all they want on Friday night - even with the game being at the Eagles Nest. 8. Paducah Tilghman (8-9) - L 61-65 vs Mayfield, L 58-59 vs Marshall Co. That's five losses in a row for the Tornado, but they showed a lot more fight Friday night when hosting the Marshals. Tilghman had the ball with 15 seconds to go, but couldn't get a decent look to win the game. When the Tornado last faced McCracken - they let Connor Miller score 30 points. They need to do a good job on both Miller and Klope if they want to have a chance on Friday night. 9. St. Mary (12-9) - W 78-45 vs Liv Central Vikings scoring title update - Owen Mikel is averaging 20.6 and Luke Sims is averaging 19.8. This one will come down to the wire! I believe that the Vikings had a small lead over the Mustangs going into the 4th quarter Tuedsay night, but McCracken pulled away for a six-point victory. 10. Ballard Memorial (5-13) - L 45-54 at Mayfield, W 95-49 Shawnee (IL) This team is much better than their 5-13 record suggests as they've had a lot of close games. I honestly think that Tuesday's game hosting the Eagles could be a tight one. 11. Christian Fellowship (7-13) 12. Fulton Co. (2-14) 13. CCA (4-15) 14. Hickman Co. (2-10) 15. Fulton City (2-15)

PTHSSlumni - I think you hit the nail on the head. I think you might see a youth movement on the Tornado team. One or two of the upperclassmen have been inconsistent and Coach O might as well see what he has for the future. Strangely, the team didn’t seem to have a lot of energy against their crosstown rival and then the home loss to Mayfield was disappointing.

I seem to say the same thing every year - who is going to be the odd team out in the 4th District? Right now I have Murray, Marshall, and Calloway 1-2-3 in my rankings and one of these teams will not make the regional tournament. At the beginning of the season I would have told you it would probably be the Marshals on the outside, but Coach Donohoo once again has his Marshals over-achieving. The #1 seed in that district will be so important and right now the Tigers have the upper hand for that. Still lots of games left to play. Key games this week: Mon - McCracken at University Heights Tues - Graves at Calloway, McCracken at St. Mary, Mayfield at Tilghman Thurs - Murray at Williamsburg (All A State Tourney) Fri - Graves at McCracken (Region 1 GOTW), Marshall at Tilghman Here are this week's rankings: 1. Murray (16-5) - If you put stock in the RPI - Murray has an RPI of .5995 and Williamsburg's is .5006 so maybe the Tigers will have the advantage in this game. This Tigers team is well-balanced in the scoring department. 2. Marshall Co. (13-4) - W 66-61 vs Calloway Co. Awesome home win Friday night for the Marshals! Freshman Matthew Langhi scored 17 points and had 8 boards in that game. It looks like this Marshals team will be very good for several years to come. 3. Calloway Co. (6-8) - L 61-66 at Marshall Co. An interesting game on Tuesday when #5 Graves County comes to town. 4. McCracken Co. (14-4) - W 74-63 at Tilghman I'll be honest here - there is not much separating this team from the top three. Connor Miller was dominant in the Mustangs' easy win at Tilghman on Friday night. He had 30 points and Junior Dylan Jackson also scored 17. The Mustangs have three tricky games this week but I think they have a decent chance of going 3-0. 5. Graves Co. (14-4) - Two chances this week for the Eagles to move up in the rankings. On Tuesday they go to Calloway, and on Friday they travel to McCracken. I named that last one my 1st Region Game of the Week. 6. Carlisle Co. (10-6) - W 62-61 vs Ballard Mem. The Comets have three straight district games coming up and I look for them to easily take care of business. 7. Paducah Tilghman (8-7) - L 63-74 vs McCracken Co. Not a good showing by the Tornado at home against the Mustangs. The final margin was only 11, but the game wasn't that close as McCracken led by as much as 25 in the 3rd quarter. Too many easy baskets given up! It seems that the Tornado needs good scoring nights from the Ws in order to compete with the top of the region - that's Woodfork, Wilkins and Williams. The Tornado have two more games at home this week and two opportunities to get a much-needed win. The game hosting the #2 Marshals will be a tough one! 8. St. Mary (11-8) - L 65-69 Vienna (IL), W 85-25 vs CCA, W 70-32 Century (IL) A pretty good showing by the Vikings in the Superman Classic. Can they give the Mustangs a close game at home on Tuesday? 9. Mayfield (8-6) - Brayden Pate is scoring 13 points per game and is shooting 51% from downtown! The Cardinals have a shot Tuesday when they play Tilghman. 10. Ballard Mem. (3-12) - L 61-62 at Carlisle Co. Close loss for the Bombers, and Birney scored 33 points in that one. 11. Christian Fellowship (6-10) 12. Fulton Co. (2-12) 13. Fulton City (1-13) 14. Hickman Co. (1-9) 15. Community Christian Acad. (4-11)

Thank you TilghmanPride! I really appreciate your work during the football season too!!!

The stable of WRs that they will have next year will once again be impressive. You mentioned Carter and Campbell above. There’s also JD Perry and Shemari Thomas. And there are some others waiting in the wings. Don’t for get about the coach’s son - Avery Thompson will be a Freshman next year and he will be a solid player!

Congrats to the Murray Tigers who won the 1st Region All A Classic this week. You might look down and say - "D Wolf is off his rocker! How did he put the Calloway County Lakers at #2 with a 5-7 record?" Well, I think it's important to now evaluate this team with Eli Finley, and the big win over the Mustangs on Tuesday is most likely a sign of what's to come for the Lakers. Key games this week: Mon - Christian Co. at McCracken Co. Tues - Graves Co. at Paducah Tilghman, Carlisle Co. at McCracken Co. Thurs - Graves Co. at Henderson Co. Fri - Calloway Co. at Marshall Co. (BG Preps 1st Region Game of the Week), McCracken Co. at Paducah Tilghman Here are my rankings: 1. Murray (15-5) - W 89-47 vs CFS, W 72-61 St. Mary, W 64-52 Carlisle Co. (All A Championship) This is a very balanced scoring team - they had five players in double figures against Carlisle in the All A Classic finals. I haven't looked into their draw, but I think they can make some noise in the All A State Tourney. Unless they play Lyon Co. - they can't beat them, and not many teams can. 2. Calloway Co. (5-7) - W 78-63 vs McCracken Co. The win over the Mustangs was not close at all, and this shows the importance of Eli Finley to this team. Finley scored 32 points, and the Lakers were up by 22 (58-36) after three quarters. I'm already starting to think about February 2nd when the Lakers travel to play the Murray Tigers. I still think there is a very good chance that these two teams meet in the Regional Finals - these two teams have the most talent in the 1st Region. 3. McCracken Co. (13-4) - L 63-78 at Calloway Co., W 79-49 vs Madisonville I still get surprised when I see how young this Mustangs team is. Out of the top five scorers only two of those are Juniors/Seniors (Connor Miller, 18 ppg and Dylan Jackson, 8 ppg). But don't get me wrong - there is a ton of talent on this team, and I think there always will be. They have several tough games this week and it will be interesting to see if they can run the table this week or not. 4. Marshall Co. (12-4) - W 56-52 at Graves Co., W 75-25 vs CFS A very impressive win at the Eagles Nest, and this avenged a home loss that the Marshals had to Graves earlier in the year. It feels like this team keeps getting better! They have a chance to move up these rankings if they can beat the Lakers at home on Friday night. A very interesting game - that's why it's our Region 1 Game of the Week. 5. Graves Co. (13-4) - W 56-51 vs Tilghman, L 52-56 vs Marshall Co., W 58-41 vs Muhlenberg Co. A solid win over Tilghman but followed up by a tough home loss to the Marshals. I will admit it - there is not much that separates teams three through eight on these rankings. The Eagles will have plenty of chances coming up to climb back up these rankings. 6. Paducah Tilghman (8-6) - L 51-56 at Graves Co. The Tornado was very close with the Eagles down the stretch but missed some free throws down the stretch. Can PT pull the upset this Friday at Otis Dinning when hosting the Mustangs? They obviously have a much better chance at home versus at the Mustangs arena. A non-basketball note - will you please pray for Coach Overstreet and his family. His son was in a bad automobile accident, and he needs your prayers. Thank you. 7. Carlisle Co. (9-6) - W 81-45 vs Fulton City, W 69-51 Mayfield, L 52-64 Murray I didn't see the game, but the 18-point win over Mayfield surprised me quite a bit. Freshman Wyatt Rickard has been playing very well as of late! That Freshman class that the Comets have is very impressive. 8. St. Mary (9-7) - W 57-48 at Ballard Mem., L 61-72 Murray Junior Palmer Sims scored 21 points in the win at Ballard. This win avenged an overtime loss at Ballard from earlier in the season. 9. Mayfield (8-6) - W 80-28 vs Fulton Co., L 51-69 Carlilse Co. This team shoots the three very well - they are averaging better than 39% from long range. 10. Ballard Mem. (3-11) - L 48-57 vs St. Mary Jace Birney is scoring 26 points per game. He needs some help from the rest of the Bombers. 11. Christian Fellowship (6-9) 12. Fulton Co. (2-12) 13. Community Christian Acad. (4-10) 14. Fulton City (1-13) 15. Hickman Co. (1-9)

He's baaaaaaaaack. Eli Finley returned this week for the Lakers. I am told he played limited minutes and still scored 20 points in their win over Carlisle. I have Calloway as the 6th ranking this week, but I look for them to climb up the rankings in the next few weeks. Key Games this week (the All A Classic is going on): Mon - St. Mary at Ballard Mem. (All A Classic quarterfinals) Tues - McCracken at Calloway (BG Preps Region 1 Game of the Week), Tilghman at Graves Fri - Marshall at Graves Here are this week's rankings: 1. Murray (12-5) - W 43-36 vs Graves Co., W 73-53 vs West Carroll (TN) A pretty close one, but it felt like the Tigers were in control for most of the game against the Eagles. This team has a very balanced scoring attack with Lincoln English scoring 14, Jeremiah Jones scoring 11, Collin Wilson scoring 11, and Zavion Carman scoring 10. I expect that the Tigers will win the 1st Region All A, but the semifinals and the finals could get interesting. 2. McCracken Co. (12-3) - W 83-62 vs Charleston, Mo. The Mustangs just seem to be getting better and better. Connor Miller scored 24 points in their game against Charleston, Mo. The game on Tuesday at Calloway will be a tricky one. 3. Graves Co. (11-3) - L 36-43 at Murray, W 49-39 at Mayfield Lukas Pigg scored 20 points in their win at Mayfield. Can the Eagles take care of business Tuesday when Tilghman visits? - I assume they will. 4. Marshall Co. (10-4) - W 68-62 at Hopkinsville We see lots of players who are dual sport athletes with Football and Basketball. Do you all see many two-sport athletes in soccer? The Marshals have two key players who were prolific players for their soccer team too. Senior Logan Parker scores 9 PPG and averages 7 boards a game, and he was the Marshals leading goal scorer this year with 21 goals on the soccer field. Junior Tommy Robertson scores 10.4 PPG and was the 3rd-leading scorer for the Marshals' soccer team. 5. Paducah Tilghman (8-5) - W 68-61 Union Co., L 57-60 Webster Co. (2a Section 1 Championship) The game against Webster came down to the wire, but the Tornado couldn't get the job done. Josh Campbell has really been playing well as of late - he scored 15 and 16 points in their games in the 2A Championship semifinals, and also pulled down 6 boards in each game. The Tornado gets a chance this week to show they belong in the upper tier of the 1st Region when they travel to Graves on Tuesday. 6. Calloway Co. (4-7) - W 72-68 vs Carlisle Co. Much of the reason that I moved the Lakers up to the 6th ranking is the return of Eli Finley. Most publications that I saw had him as the top-ranked player for Region 1 this year. I am not sure if Finley is 100%, but I understand that he was on some restricted minutes in his first game. The Lakers have an opportunity to knock off the Mustangs on Tuesday, and this is an interesting matchup with Finley's return. That's why I named it this week's Region 1 GOTW! 7. Mayfield - W 62-55 at Ballard Mem., L 39-59 vs Graves Co. Could the Cardinals make some noise in this week's All A Classic? They'll have to shoot the ball well. 8. Carlisle Co. (7-5) - L 68-72 at Calloway Co., W 92-40 vs Fulton Co. Can we go ahead and give the Comets the 1st District Title? The other three teams are very young and inexperienced. I'm not sure who the 2nd-best team is. Tough call. 9. St. Mary (8-6) - W 64-53 vs Caldwell Co. Vikings Scoring Title update - Owen Mikel 21.1 PPG, Luke Sims 20.5 PPG. I'm guessing the last couple games they won't pass to each other. 10. Ballard Memorial (3-10) - L 55-62 vs Mayfield Jace Birney can score!!! 11. Christian Fellowship (6-6) 12. Fulton Co. (2-11) 13. Fulton City (1-10) 14. Community Christian Acad. (3-10) 15. Hickman Co. (1-8)

This region is much more wide-open than I thought it would be! I thought that Murray and Calloway were easily 1-2, and that the rest of the region was fighting for 3rd place. But Calloway has had a key injury, and I don't think that the Tigers have quite played up to the level that I expected. Should be fun to watch how the rankings will change over the next few weeks. Key games this week: Tues - Graves Co. at Murray (BG Preps 1st Region Game of the Week), Calloway Co. at Carlisle Co. Thurs - Tilghman vs Union Co. (2A Section 1), Marshall Co. at Hopkinsville Fri - Graves at Mayfield Here are my rankings: 1. Graves Co. (10-2) - Champions of the Surf and Slam Hoops Classic Congrats to the Eagles as they went out to California and won a tourney with three wins in three days. Tuesday (1/2) will be a major test as they travel to #2 Murray. This was an easy choice for my BG Preps Region 1 Game of the Week! I think this may be the toughest regional game they have all year. 2. Murray (10-5) - L 52-61 Oldham Co., W 75-56 Southern, W 56-51 Atherton The Tigers have a pretty balanced scoring attack with four players averaging between 9 and 14 points per game. Lincoln English (14 ppg), Jeremiah Jones (12 ppg), Collin Wilson (10 ppg), Zay Carman (9 ppg). 3. McCracken Co. (11-3) - two wins and one loss in the Poplar Bluff Bball Showdown. I don't normally give a lot of love to the players who clean up the boards, but I need to give a shoutout to sophomore Jackson Klope who is averaging 11.3 rebounds per game. I think this young man most definitely has a chance to play at the next level. 4. Marshall Co. (9-4) - W 65-52 vs Green Co., W 60-55 Madison Central, L 52-62 South Laurel This team shoots better than 38% from three-point land. Kyzer Phillips, Tommy Robertson, and Matthew Langhi are all shooting better than 40%. 5. Paducah Tilghman (7-4) - L 65-81 Grayson Co., W 88-57 John Hardin, W 73-59 Dawson Springs We will find out who the Tornado are over the next couple weeks. On Thursday they play Union Co. in the semis of the Section 1 2A Championship. If they can get past the Braves then they will probably play Webster County, who knocked off Calloway a couple weeks ago. Miles Woodfork (19 ppg), and Ahmad Wilkins (18 ppg) are shouldering much of the scoring load for PT. 6. Mayfield (6-4) - W 54-45 Union Co., W 59-50 Mt. Vernon, IL An interesting opportunity on Friday night when the Cardinals host #1 Graves County. Braydon Pate can't possibly keep up his 53% shooting from three, can he? He's making 3.1 threes per game right now. 7. Calloway Co. (3-7) - L 55-70 Frederick Douglass, L 61-67 North Laurel, W 72-54 Bourbon Co. I believe this is most likely the best 3-7 team in the state of Kentucky. I still think that the Lakers can make a big run over the next few weeks. Especially if they can be at full strength. 8. Carlisle Co. (6-4) - L 56-81 Butler Co., W 72-53 Breckenridge Co. Wyatt Rickard is a freshman to watch in the 1st Region. He's averaging 9 points and 5 rebounds per game and keeps getting better and better. 9. St. Mary (7-6) - L 57-66 Dixie Heights, W 93-68 Marion Co., W 75-50 Valley Two wins and one loss in the Henry County Invitational. I honestly feel that if Sims and Mikel get hot then this team could about beat anyone in this region! 10. Christian Fellowship (3-9) Ahmad Dee is scoring 17 ppg for CFS. 11. Ballard Mem. (3-9) 12. Hickman Co. (1-6) 13. Fulton Co. (1-10) 14. Fulton City (1-5) 15. CCA (1-9)

Merry Christmas to everyone! I'm here to tell you that I don't evaluate teams when they play out-of-state teams. I know less about these out-of-state teams than the KHSAA RPI (rim shot). How am I supposed to know if these teams are playing the Hickory Huskers or the Washington Generals? You might say - "Come on D Wolf why don't you just do some research?" Nope - I'm too busy running my kids around P Town. Not gonna do it. A few small changes to this week's rankings, but not much: 1. Graves Co. (7-2) - W 69-65 vs Marion (IL), L 46-56 vs Holy Cross, W 87-41 vs Fairview This week the Eagles travel to San Diego, CA for the Surf n Slam Hoop Classic! I'm already looking forward to their January 2nd game when they are away at Murray. I have a feeling in January there will be a lot of shuffling around in these rankings. 2. Murray (8-4) - L 46-64 Warren East, W 68-59 Russelville, L 45-62 Caverna A 1-2 week for the Tigers. Lincoln English had 18 & 10 in the win over Russelville. This week the Tigers play in the City of Middletown Holiday Classic. 3. McCracken Co. (9-2) - W 90-67 New Faith Christian (GA), W 60-41 Columbia Academy (TN), W 57-51 at Marshall Co. The Mustangs are the champions of the FNB Bank Holiday Classic! Two weeks and a split with the Marshals - the rubber match is Feb 16 at home for the Mustangs. Not surprisingly, Connor Miller (18 ppg) and Jackson Klope (16 ppg) are averaging over half of the Mustangs' points so far this season - 51% to be exact. This week they travel to the Poplar Bluff Basketball Showdown - I think that's in Missouri. 4. Marshall Co. (7-3) - W 75-62 vs Huntingdon (TN), W 65-56 vs Douglass (GA), L 51-57 vs McCracken Co. The Marshals have a pretty balanced scoring attack with Alex Staples (14 ppg), Matthew Langhi (12 ppg), Tommy Robertson (10 ppg), Logan Parker (9 ppg). Parker is also pulling down 7 boards a game. This week they are at the Richmond Car & Truck Holiday Classic. 5. Paducah Tilghman (5-3) - L 70-90 at Massac Co. (IL) I don't know a whole lot about Massac (see above), but any time you let a team put up 90 on you it tells me that you're not playing a whole lot of D. Sophomore Miles Woodfork has been on a scoring tear as of late, and is now averaging 20 ppg. If the Tornado can make a tourney run then I think Woodfork might be in the conversation for Region 1 POY. This week the Tornado plays in the H&H Holiday Hoopfest at Logan County. 6. Calloway Co. (2-5) - L 45-60 vs Jonesboro, AR The Lakers are much better than their 2-5 record suggests, but they have played a brutal schedule, and still no sign of Eli Finley. Things don't get any easier this week as they open with Frederick Douglass at the White, Greer, & Maggard Holiday Classic. 7. Carlisle Co. (5-3) - W 69-63 Grayson Co., W 56-42 Crittenden Co., L 42-51 Logan Co. A 2nd place finish for the Comets at the St. Mary Christmas Classic. Zack Grogan scored 24 in the win over Grayson County. This week the Comets play in the Southwire Holiday Classic in Owensboro. This team is getting better and better. 8. Mayfield (4-4) - L 32-54 vs Murray, L 52-59 Hopkinsville, W 58-41 West Creek (TN) This week the Cardinals play in the Henderson County Classic. Brayden Pate has made 26 of 50 three-point shots so far this season. He is making more than three of those per game. 9. St. Mary (5-5) - L 48-53 vs Logan Co., W 80-68 vs Livingston Central, W 73-63 vs Grayson Co. Update on the Vikings internal scoring title for this season - Mikel is averaging 21.2 per game and Sims is averaging 20.9. I have a feeling this will go down to the wire. This week the Vikings play in the Henry County Invitational Tournament. 10. Ballard Mem. (3-6) - L 53-68 Crittenden Co., L 65-85 Grayson Co., W 71-60 Livingston Central This week the Bombers also play in the Henderson County Classic. 11. Christian Fellowship (4-5) 12. Hickman Co. (1-6) 13. Fulton Co. (1-7) 14. Fulton City (1-5) 15. Community Christian Acad. (1-8)

I seriously contemplated putting my Top 5 teams in a hat and drawing out the order. There is very, very little that separates team one through five this week. Here are my rankings: 1. Graves Co. (5-1) - W 68-45 vs Caldwell Co., W 62-56 vs Ballard Memorial The Eagles have three players averaging double figures - all averaging 12 points or more. Lukas Pigg, Briley VeuCasovic and Braden Waller. The win last week at Marshall is really the brightest spot on the resume for the Eagles and that's what lands them in this top ranking. 2. Murray (6-2) - W 56-39 vs Marshall Co., W 48-41 (OT) at Calloway Co. The Crosstown Classic lived up to its billing, and the Tigers came away with the road win at Calloway. Earlier in the week the Tigers had a very nice win over the Marshals with Jermiah Jones scoring 20 points. 3. Marshall Co. (5-2) - L 39-56 at Murray, W 59-51 vs McCracken Co. No surprise with the road loss at Murray - that's a very tough place to play. A very nice bounceback game with the home victory over last week's #1 team Mustangs. Alex Staples scored 18 points in that win! 4. McCracken Co. (6-2) - W 71-63 vs Mayfield, L 51-59 at Marshall Co., W 63-51 vs St. Mary We knew that Connor Miller and Klope would lead the way for the Mustangs this year, but it was sort of an unknown who would round out the scoring load. How about Junior Dylan Jackson - he's scoring over 9 PPG so far this year. 5. Paducah Tilghman (5-2) - W 90-34 at CCA, W 83-69 vs St. Mary, W 73-67 at Ballard Mem. I have the Tornado at my number five spot, but there is not a lot that separates their resume from number 1 Graves Co. That's why I said that teams one through five have so much pairity. I honestly thought the game against the Vikings would be very close, but the Tornado were in control for the entire contest. Sophomore Miles Woodfork scored 29 points in that game to lead the way. 6. Mayfield (3-2) - L 63-71 at McCracken Co. , W 88-34 at Cairo (IL), W 71-13 vs Hickman Co. The Cardinals hung close with McCracken for most of that game, and it looks like they will be a force to be reckoned with this year in the first region. Monday they host the Murray Tigers, and that will be an interesting game. 7. Calloway Co. (2-4) - L 52-55 at Webster Co. (2A Tourney), L 41-48 (OT) vs Murray Nicely done for the short-handed Lakers to take the Crosstown Classic to overtime. I don't want to sound like a broken record - but this evaluation is done with what Calloway has done so far this year without their top player - Eli Finley. I'm assuming that Finley will return soon, and then I will begin evaluating that team with how they perform. The early exit in the 2A sectional was disappointing. I don't know anything about Finley's timetable for return - please leave a reply if you've heard any news on that front. 8. Carlisle Co. (3-2) - W 92-57 at Livingston Central The Comets have a trio of seniors averaging double figures - Burnett, Grogan and Arnold. 9. Ballard Memorial (2-4) - W 66-44 at Hickman Co., L 56-62 at Graves Co., L 67-73 vs Tilghman The early favorite for leading Region 1 scorer is Jace Birney - he is currently averaging 26.4 PPG. 10. St. Mary (3-4) - L 69-83 at Tilghman, L 51-63 at McCracken Co. Sims and Mikel are leading the way in scoring for the Vikings, but they need some help. This is still a dangerous team that could pull some upsets this season. 11. CFS (3-4) 12. Fulton Co. (1-8) 13. Fulton City (1-5) 14. Hickman Co. (1-6) 15. CCA (1-7)