Basketball Jones

6th Region Week 9 Review Last week, I wrote that a nice run at the All "A" Classic state tournament by then-No. 2 Evangel Christian coupled with another loss by then-No. 1 Western would switch them in the rankings. That's exactly what happened, and then some. Western was soundly beaten by DeSales during an 0-2 week. Evangel Christian won the small-school state tournament in impressive fashion behind junior guard Christian Doerr who averaged 22.5 points per game. So, meet the new No. 1: Evangel Christian. There are no other changes in the rankings although DeSales tried to make some noise. Regional Rankings: 1. Evangel Christian (20-3): What a week for the Eagles and Christian Doerr. The Eagles went 4-0 and won the All "A" Classic state championship with wins against Murray, Martin County, Owen County and a 65-62 win over Covington Holy Cross in the final, all in McBrayer Arena at Eastern Kentucky University. Doerr led the team in scoring every game. He scored 19 points against Murray. He had 22 vs. Owen County. He dropped in 31 against Martin County and Kyran Tilley added 26. Doerr scored 18 in the final, but did not earn MVP honors, losing out to high-scoring Jacob Meyer of Holy Cross who scored a single-game record 49 points in the final and averaged nearly 40 points at the event. Doerr, Tilley and teammate Cyr Malonga were named all-tournament. The Eagles are 6-0 vs. the region and 4-0 against the 23rd District. Their best regional win came against Pleasure Ridge Park. Outside the region, they have beaten Lincoln County, St. Xavier and Elizabethtown. 2. Western (15-7): The decidedly unhot Warriors have suddenly lost four of their last five games. After getting upset the previous week by Jeffersontown, they took it on the chin last week against DeSales, 74-52, and Indianapolis Cathedral, 63-49. They are 5-6 since the 10-1 start. They have beaten Trinity and Elizabethtown out of the region and are 5-3 against mostly solid out-of-state competition. Until the Jan. 13 loss to Male, their only loss to a Kentucky team was against Warren Central. Western is now 5-2 against regional competition. Last season the Wariors beat Pleasure Ridge Park by one in overtime. They play each other in the regular season finale Feb. 17. 3. Pleasure Ridge Park (16-3): The Panthers won their only game, beating Portland Christian with 16 points each from Keith Robinson and Jacob Dixon. PRP is 8-1 against the region, including wins against Holy Cross and Jeffersontown. Outside the region, the Panthers have beaten St. Xavier and DuPont Manual, and that's about it. But they did beat Butler by 34 in last season's regional tournament and they haven't lost to DeSales since 2016 so for now, they rank higher than those two teams. 4. Butler (16-6): The Bears won their only game, dropping DeSales at home by 20 with 20 points from Terry Walker, nearly double his season average. They have beaten DeSales by at least 20 points in two of their last three meetings. Beat DeSales last season by 21 and 10. They have also beaten Male, Ballard and Fleming County this season. Four losses have come against Mason County, Eastern, Male and LaRue County. 5. DeSales (15-7): The Colts went 2-1, defeating Western, 74-52, losing to Butler, 68-48, and beating Christian Academy-Louisville, 75-43. Julian Bunton and Tyler Klein both scored a team-high 16 points against Western and Crew Gibson had a double-double. They also have beaten Iroquois. As I have said, DeSales and Butler have probably played the most challenging schedules of any of the teams in the top five but you can't ignore the fact that PRP has been a major pain to both squads in the past. That said, either Butler or DeSales are capable of winning the region. 6. Iroquois (14-8): The Raiders won their only contest, beating Bullitt Central. Have yet to win a district game in three tries but defeated Holy Cross by 18. 7. Holy Cross (14-7): The Cougars were idle last week. They haven't played since Jan. 20. They have beaten Fairdale and Beth Haven. 8. Fern Creek (10-10): Some positives here. The Tigers went 2-0 last week, beating WEB DuBois and a 14-7 Elizabethtown squad with a double-double of 10 points and 10 rebounds from Camren Trice and 15 points from Noah Glover. The Tigers have beaten Trinity, too. The previous week, they beat Jeffersontown. They have won three games in a row. As I've said, Fern Creek thrashed Fairdale by 30 last season. So Fairdale pretty much has to beat Fern Creek to be ranked ahead of them despite the better overall record right now. They play. Feb. 7. 9. Fairdale (16-6): The Bulldogs finished the week 2-0 with victories against North Bullitt and Brown. Jacob Tucker erupted for 33 points against North Bullitt. He had 21 vs. Brown. The 'Dogs have won six straight. They have beaten Beth Haven twice and Jeffersontown. 10. Jeffersontown (8-9): The Chargers lost their only game to DuPont Manual. They are 6-4 since the 2-5 start. They have beaten Western. Also beat Bullitt East. 11. Beth Haven (16-7): The Bearcats went 2-1, beating the home school Christian Educational Consortium and Kentucky Country Day and losing to 8-12 Atherton. Yawn. They have beaten Iroquois, Lou. Holy Cross and Doss, which doesn't exactly inspire either. 12. Bullitt East (9-13): Enjoyed a 3-0 week, beating Shawnee, Christian Academy-Louisville and Waggener. Had lost six of eight. Has beaten Doss. 13. Doss (5-17): The Dragons lost to Spencer County in the only game of the week. Have beaten Moore and also beat Oldham County in a non-region game back in December. 14. Moore (9-13): The Mustangs went 1-1 for the week with a win over Central. They have beaten Beth Haven, Bullitt Central and North Bullitt. 15. Southern (8-15): The Trojans went 1-2 last week. They have beaten North Bullitt, Iroquois and Bullitt Central. 16. North Bullitt (9-12): The Eagles' only game of the week was a loss to Fairdale. North Bullitt has split two games vs. Bullitt Central. 17. Bullitt Central (3-19): The Cougars went 1-2 on the week. 18. Valley (0-16): The Vikings were 0-2 last week. 19. Whitefield Academy (6-14): Went 1-2 for the week.

LexCath-Great Crossing summary below: Potter had 14 points and seven rebounds against a very good defensive 7-foot center with two blocked shots and three steals, but had just two offensive rebounds and picked up four personal fouls. So, 4 Quarters is correct. He didn't have a huge game. He was just merely very effective against one of the best teams and one of the best post players in the state. Well done, Mr. Potter. I will be more than happy to give such a fine young man some love. lecath box.jfif

Were you there...

What were his numbers...

That's a really good list. My top three: Sheppard: The one player in the state clearly getting the most national publicity, and it's deserved. Ipsaro: If it's possible, he's the most underrated elite player in the state. Potter: The best player on one of the best teams in the state with excellent scoring and rebounding numbers and solid shooting percentages against a tough schedule. He can really bolster his case tonight with a huge game against Great Crossing.

His father, coach Billy Cole, passed away suddenly a week before Christmas in 2015. He was just 52. I'm sure his dad would be proud. Good luck, Josh!

A double dose of local basketball history tonight. Coach Russell reached the 400-win milestone for boys basketball with a 58-51 Campbell County district seeding game victory against Scott. The Camels clinch first place in the 37th District. Russell now has 451 career wins in both boys and girls basketball. That's just 10 wins fewer than St. Henry's Dave Faust but because they came in two different regions in both boys and girls basketball and do not set a record other than reaching an important milestone, it hasn't gotten enough attention. Congratulations coach Russell.

Coach Dave Faust notched career win No. 461 tonight. He breaks Ken Shields' record for most all-time in Ninth Region boys basketball history. The Dave Faust Wins Countdown To Pass Ken Shields (updated) 451 start of season 452 beat Cooper, 53-50 453 beat Conner, 71-61 454 beat Villa Madonna, 81-36 455 beat Ludlow, 86-49 456 beat Scott, 78-69 457 beat Newport Central Catholic, 61-57 458 beat Bishop Brossart, 73-41 459 beat Dixie Heights, 48-41 460 beat Boone County, 74-63 461 beat Bluegrass United, 84-45 Old Record: Ken Shields 460 New Record: Dave Faust 461

It could be a big historical night for local basketball in two regions! Campbell County 25th-year coach Aric Russell recorded boys' basketball career win No. 399 Wednesday night against Walton-Verona. He can reach 400 today at Scott in a 37th district-deciding game beginning at 5:30 pm in the 10th Region. Russell's boys record is now 399-251 in 13 seasons at Campbell County (275 wins) and nine at Newport (124 wins). He also coached girls basketball at Newport (51 wins in three seasons). He has 450 career basketball wins in different regions! His chase for 400 boys wins has been overshadowed by Dave Faust's pursuit of the Ninth Region all-time victory record, which can also happen tonight.

Last night's St. Henry score in the win against Boone County was 74-63. Coach Faust goes for the all-time Ninth Region victory record tonight at 7:30 at St. Henry vs. Bluegrass United.

Coach Dave Faust notched career win No. 460 tonight. He ties Ken Shields and needs one win to pass Shields for most all-time in Ninth Region history. The Dave Faust Wins Countdown To Pass Ken Shields (updated) 451 start of season 452 beat Cooper, 53-50 453 beat Conner, 71-61 454 beat Villa Madonna, 81-36 455 beat Ludlow, 86-49 456 beat Scott, 78-69 457 beat Newport Central Catholic, 61-57 458 beat Bishop Brossart, 73-41 459 beat Dixie Heights, 48-41 460 beat Boone County Record: Ken Shields 460 461 Next scheduled St. Henry game: Jan. 27 vs. Bluegrass United (Lexington home school) according to the KHSAA The next two scheduled games after that are also at home, according to the KHSAA: Feb. 2 vs. Lloyd Feb. 3 vs. Holmes

A very interesting discussion. I think high school basketball scheduling is one the most fascinating yet least discussed prep topics in the media. All it takes is a curious reporter asking an approachable, entrenched coach with a safe job some basic questions and voila, you got a nice story. But alas, Northern Kentucky coverage isn't what it used to be. Man, do I miss the Kentucky Post.

I've talked with a handful of coaches about this over the years. For some coaches, not all, it comes down to an existential dilemma. Schedule to get better, for sure. But schedule too many tough games, then lose a lot of them, and you might lose the job. Some teams have to play an easy schedule because of the district they're in. Or because of their region, especially if budgetary concerns preclude a lot of long travel dates out of the area. There are the majority of coaches who want to test their squads as much as possible. There are also coaches who want to build confidence in their team and there are coaches who want to try out different rotations early on, so an easy schedule at a certain juncture can be somewhat beneficial. Scheduling easy wins can also be an attempt to earn a certain record or make a record look better so they can keep the job and exist another year. That's why I call it an existential dilemma.

Wow. That's a fairly huge deal. Just off the top, I can't even think of a McDonald's All-American from Kentucky since Scotty Hopson from University Heights, and that had to be more than 10 years ago. Surely there's been once since then other than Sheppard.

Thanks, dude. I'm liking you more and more. I always wanted to be a teacher. But alas, it didn't happen. Not sure why fate didn't smile on me there. I had a good career in my fifth chosen career so the news isn't all bad. I just respect the heck out of a 37-year teacher! That explains the solid insight you just expressed there. Some good points, sir. The way I look at it though is, I don't have to do four regions. I get to do four regions.

The pride of Scottsville, Bert also does radio with Mark Wehry at 859 Sports Radio. He is an excellent basketball analyst. The Highlands boys golf team has made five trips to the state tournament under his direction.

Awww, they just missed making this season's 100-100 club! That 100-100 list I made kinda fizzled so I'm thinking it has not happened a lot.

Kentucky mountain basketball legends BB King, Randy Napier and Carolyn Alexander have been named to the 2023 class of the Kentucky High School Athletic Association Hall of Fame, a 14-person class that also includes Dave Cowens, Jared Lorenzen, Derek Smith and Chris Brohm, among other notables. Their hall of fame bios: Barry “BB” King led Knott County Central to two KHSAA Boys’ Basketball Sweet 16 appearances as an athlete and five as a coach. King scored 1,941 career points, which ranks third all-time in school history. The Patriots went 260-109 (.705) over 12 seasons, including a span of four consecutive region and district titles from 2012-2015. Knott County Central advanced to eight region finals during King’s tenure which also included a stint as Kentucky All-Star coach, claiming two WYMT Mountain Classic championships. Note: King, known as the "King of Mountain basketball", coached the beginning of this season at Breathitt County before his death in December. Randy Napier coached girls’ basketball at MC Napier and Perry County Central for a combined 38 seasons. Napier’s career record of 886-285 (.757) makes him the all-time winningest girls’ basketball coach in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, while also topping the sport’s list of games coached at 1,171. His teams won 22 district titles, 10 region titles and one KHSAA Girls’ Basketball Sweet 16. Napier earned Region 14 Coach of the Year honors 11 times and coached the Kentucky All-Stars in 2007 and the McDonald’s All-American team in 2014. Carolyn Alexander, the 1998 Kentucky Miss Basketball runner-up, led Hazard to the 1997 KHSAA Girls’ Basketball Sweet 16 championship and back-to-back All “A” titles. In her junior season, Alexander earned first-team All-State honors from the Associated Press, Lexington Herald-Leader and Courier Journal, and was named the No. 1 player in Kentucky by the AP. Alexander’s 3,726 career points rank fifth all-time, highlighted by a 1,029-point campaign in 1997-98. She also totaled more than 1,100 rebounds, 500 steals, 300 assists and 100 blocks over her career. The induction ceremony is April 30 at the Central Back Center Ballroom, Lexington. Congratulations to these Kentucky legends.

I have not seen this anywhere in BGP but I might have missed it since I focus more on boys hoops. Conner junior guard Anna Hamilton joined the 1,000-point club Jan. 13 against Boone County. In so doing bro and sis became the first brother-sister combo in Conner history to reach 1,000. Conner senior guard Landen Hamilton also joined the school's 1,000-pount club earlier this month. He hit the milestone Jan. 10 in the upset of Covington Catholic. I'm sure the Hamilton family is feeling just grand.

I think we all know what a terrific high school and college player Kevin Listerman was, but I think as Highlands coach, Listerman is an unheralded success story. Imagine if Highlands had become impatient with him with no winning seasons and just 49 wins his first five years and let him go. They may not have won 115 of their last 150 games without the dude.

Really cool to see all those names! Can't have the teams without the players. Yo.

Check out this little-known gem of a song by David Crosby: Cowboy Movie (from the appropriately titled album If I Could Only Remember My Name)

I assume you're talking about this season-long cluster of PRP, Butler and DeSales, which has pretty much been a chore to analyze without any head-to-head results thus far. Actually, looking at last season's results, especially results from more than a year ago, is nearly a last resort and is only used in special cases (like PRP, Butler and DeSales) where parsing teams is difficult, especially teams that have yet to play each or who will not play each other this season. So I would say I put some weight on last year's results, not a lot. The things I consider when I take a look at teams, pretty much in this order but not exclusively in this order, are: win-loss record record against the better regional teams quality of competition success against quality competition head-to-head results "good" losses in relatively close games against quality competition bad losses the quality of the head coach team depth the caliber of their best players injuries defections significant results from the previous season team vs. team history I think these recaps of Butler and DeSales during Week 6 sums up the dilemma I've been facing with the PRP, Butler, DeSales conundrum without them going head-to-head yet this season (key sentiments in bold): BUTLER: Butler's schedule looks a bit tougher than PRP's. But Butler lost to PRP twice last season, one of them by six in double overtime during the regular season. Butler lost to PRP, 79-45, in the first round of the Sixth Region Tournament, then lost the majority of its starters to graduation. PRP lost to Jeffersontown by eight in last year's regional semifinals and returned three starters. Is it really a slam dunk to say that Butler can make up 34 points on PRP with fewer returning starters than PRP? That's a pretty tall order. Can't wait to find out. Butler was in the regional for the first time since 2020. Butler is 0-2 in regional tournament play since winning the region in 2019. PRP is 2-3 in the tournament in the same span, so PRP during that time has had the strongest, most sustained presence when the chips are down in the regional tournament plus they have won three of their last four games against Butler since the beginning of the 2018-19 season. I'm pretty much of this mind: Until Butler shows me it can beat PRP, PRP will be ahead of Butler in the rankings. But they don't play each other until Feb. 10. That's another month of hair-splitting between these two squads. DESALES: DeSales lost to Butler twice last season and hasn't beaten Butler since January of 2020. That's a factor in the rankings. However, DeSales has played a tougher schedule than Butler and PRP this season suggesting that the Colts have been tested more. So, they've got that going for them. DeSales and Butler square off Jan. 26 at Butler. It should be noted too that DeSales hasn't beaten PRP since 2016. Though their games have generally been close, PRP has won three straight against DeSales. That's a factor, as well. But they are not scheduled to play this season. Right now, DeSales has stronger wins than PRP but that doesn't necessarily mean DeSales can beat PRP. And finally, it's just too much of an ordeal to go to other state web sites to check records plus this season's reputations for out-of-state teams like Huntington Prep to make ranking decisions. That's why I keep that kind of analysis in state. When you do four regions each week, you have to draw a line somewhere in analysis. If I was doing one region each week, I would just crush it and stop at no limit to analyze teams for my readers. I really appreciate the astute audience I write to here at BGP and I think this kind of transparency from a regional ranker can be educational for others, not just Hoopstars, so I thought I would go ahead and try to explain where I'm coming from. How'd I do? Any other questions?

11th Region Week 8 Review Great Crossing and Lexington Catholic remain 1-2. I seem to be in the minority regarding Great Crossing's placement atop the rankings. Most others prefer Lexington Catholic there, and many of them have LexCath ahead of Great Crossing in state rankings. It should be noted that in a preseason poll of 11th Region coaches, Great Crossing placed No. 1 followed by LexCath. Cats' Pause, a respected, long-standing Kentucky authority on high school basketball, utilizes local reporters embedded in their respective regions to create regional rankings and Great Crossing was ranked No. 1 there followed by Lexington Catholic. You can look it up. So, I am not alone in showing No. 1 love for Great Crossing. This, of course, is all going to be decided this weekend when the two teams meet. All in all, the same teams are still in the top five but in a little bit different order. Movement in the rankings occurs No. 3 to No. 16, featured by a jump to No. 3 by Frederick Douglass and a drop to No. 8 by Henry Clay. Individually, Great Crossing's Malachi Moreno registered three double-doubles last week and teammate Vince Dawson continued to put up outstanding scoring numbers. Braden Hudson from Madison Southern had a big scoring game against Paul Laurence Dunbar. Robby Todd, Jaylen Davis and Jayden West keep getting the job done for Madison Central. Regional Rankings: 1. Great Crossing (18-3): The Warhawks rambled through a 3-0 week. They beat Western Hills, 83-69, with 25 points from Vince Dawson and 20 points and 13 rebounds from Malachi Moreno. They routed East Jessamine, 74-45 with 26 points and 17 rebounds from Moreno. They smashed Moore, 87-49, at the Dan Cummins Classic at Scott County with 19 points from Dawson and another double-double from Moreno (16 points, 10 rebounds). They have won five games in a row and 17 of 19. Their losses came against Covington Catholic, Warren Central and George Rogers Clark. But they have a win against George Rogers Clark and have also beaten Ashland Blazer and Lyon County. They are 7-0 against the region and 4-0 versus the 41st District. As I have said, the Knights probably deserve the top spot but Great Crossing is here because I think Great Crossing can beat Lexington Catholic head-to-head. If LexCath proves me wrong and beats Great Crossing this week, LexCath goes straight to No. 1. 2. Lexington Catholic (20-2): The Knights defeated Paul Laurence Dunbar 81-52 in their only game of the week. Hudson Sparks led the way with 21 points and Reece Potter had a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds. They played five games last week. The Knights should be well rested when they play Great Crossing Saturday at Franklin County's Gary Moore Classic. They have never met. 3. Frederick Douglass (17-2): The Broncos extended their winning streak to 14 with wins against Henry Clay, Madison Central and Paul Laurence Dunbar. Kai Simpson scored 25 against Henry Clay but he did not play against Madison Central. Melo Boone had 19 points and 11 rebounds vs. Mad Central. They are 8-2 versus the region and 4-0 against the 42nd District. They stopped a three-game losing streak to Henry Clay and zip right past them in the rankings. I was probably a little too generous with Henry Clay in previous rankings. The Broncos' only losses are to rankings leaders Great Crossing and Lexington Catholic, but they have beaten just four Kentucky teams with winning records (Letcher County Central, Montgomery County, Harlan and Madison Central). 4. Madison Central (10-9): The Indians posted a 1-1 week, beating West Jessamine with 31 points from Robby Todd, and losing to Frederick Douglass despite 21 points from Jaylen Davis and 20 from Jayden West. They handed Warren Central its only loss but that came with point guard Hagan Harrison in the lineup. He has since left the team. The Indians are 5-3 following his departure. They are 6-2 against the region, 1-0 vs. the 44th District. Central beat Madison Southern by 20 in December with Harrison in the lineup. 5. Madison Southern (14-6): The Eagles went 2-0, beating Paul Laurence Dunbar, 91-90, and Clinton County, 91-81. Braden Hudson dropped in 36 points against Dunbar. He had 24 vs. Clinton County, one behind leader Zach Hudson (25). The Eagles have beaten South Laurel and handed Pulaski County one of its two losses but they've played just three games inside the region, going 2-1. 6. Lexington Christian (14-5): The Eagles went a surprising 0-2 last week, losing to Christian Academy-Louisville by 30 and to Lafayette by two. They are 7-2 against the region, 3-2 vs. the 43rd District but have beaten just two Kentucky teams with winning records (Lincoln County and Sayre). Quality losses include Grant County by two and Lexington Catholic by just one, making this week's results somewhat puzzling. They also have beaten Sayre. 7. Sayre (14-5): The Spartans enjoyed a 2-0 week with wins against Scott County and Henry Clay for the second time this season. Ian Reesor scored 20 vs. Scott County. 8. Henry Clay (10-10): The Blue Devils lost at Frederick Douglass by three and lost to Sayre by nine. Twelve of their last 13 games have been decided by nine points or fewer. Henry Clay's first six losses came against Eastern, Harrison County, Simon Kenton, Lincoln County, Sayre and McCracken County. They have beaten Conner, Highlands and Butler but there are simply too many losses to keep ranking them so highly. They have dropped to 6-5 in the region and 1-4 against district foes. 9. Paul Laurence Dunbar (6-14): The Bulldogs went 0-3, losing to Madison Southern, Lexington Catholic and Frederick Douglass. Have not beaten a state team with a winning record. Best KY win is against 8-9 Woodford County. Dunbar has beaten Bryan Station and Tates Creek in the region and that's it. They are 2-8 against the region. 10. Bryan Station (6-13): The Defenders finished 2-0 for the week, beating Lafayette for the second time and Scott County by 13. They are 4-4 in the region. 11. Western Hills (8-9): The Wolverines went 1-1 for the week, losing to Great Crossing and beating Scott. They have beaten Sayre but lost to Bryan Station. They are 4-5 vs. the region. 12. Scott County (8-14): The Cardinals suffered an 0-3 week, losing to Sayre, Bryan Station and Male. Have beaten one Kentucky team with a winning record (Wolfe County). They are 2-6 vs. the region with wins against Henry Clay and Lafayette. 13. Tates Creek (6-12): Lost three tough games to George Rogers Clark, Lincoln County and Harrison County. Has beaten Lafayette twice but no wins against state teams with winning records. Has beaten Franklin County as well for a 3-6 record vs. the region. 14. Lafayette (7-13): The Generals lost to Bryan Station and beat Lexington Christian by two. Lafayette's only previous regional win came against Franklin County. The Generals are 2-9 against regional teams. 15. Franklin County (9-8): The Flyers lost to Henry Clay and beat Marion County and Frankfort. Their only regional wins are against Frankfort and Frankfort Christian for a 2-6 regional mark. 16. Frankfort (10-8): The Panthers went 1-1 for the week beating Bethlehem and losing to Franklin County. The Bethlehem win is their first against a Kentucky team with a winning record. They are 4-6 against the region. 17. Model (7-10): The Patriots went 2-1, beating Thomas Nelson and Lee County and losing to Jackson County. 18. Frankfort Christian (8-12): The Royals lost to Kentucky School for the Deaf in their only game. 19. Berea (7-14): The Pirates went 1-1 for the week, losing to Estill County and beating the home school Ligon COGO.

6th Region Week 8 Review Jeffersontown's upset win over Western breaks a tie for 10th with Beth Haven, which falls to No. 11. Jeffersontown, the defending regional tournament champion, sits alone at No. 10. Western hangs on to the top spot but a nice run this week at the All "A" Classic state tournament by No. 2 Evangel Christian coupled with another loss by Western could flip the script. Pleasure Ridge Park, Butler and DeSales will eventually have a say when it comes to regional supremacy. Those teams form a clear top five and any one of them could win the regional tournament. Right now, they are the only teams with fewer than two regional losses. With the exception of Fern Creek, everybody else has at least three regional losses. In the back half of the rankings, Southern moves ahead of North Bullitt. Regional Rankings: 1. Western (15-3): The Warriors went 1-1 last week. They were surprised by Jeffersontown, 69-62, at home for their first regional loss, and beat Waggener, 67-42, on the road. Western is 5-1 against regional competition and 2-0 versus the 22nd District but doesn't have a lot of high-quality wins. Outside the region, the Warriors have beaten 12-6 Elizabethtown and 14-6 Trinity. They are 5-4 since the 10-1 start. Before falling to Jeffersontown, their only losses to Kentucky teams were to Warren Central and Male. 2. Evangel Christian (16-3): The Eagles split two games last week, losing to an 11-7 Breathitt County squad by one, and beating North Bullitt by 17 with 25 points from Christian Doerr and 22 from Gianni Davis. They are 6-0 vs. the region and 4-0 against the 23rd District. Their best regional win came against Pleasure Ridge Park. Outside the region, they have defeated Lincoln County, St. Xavier and Elizabethtown, so it's not like they are smearing Western with better wins. The Sixth Region All "A" Classic champion takes on Murray in a first-round state All "A" contest Jan. 26 at Eastern Kentucky's McBrayer Arena. 3. Pleasure Ridge Park (15-3): The Panthers enjoyed a 3-0 week, pushing their winning streak to four. They defeated Southern 72-62, WEB DuBois 68-32 and Beth Haven 79-46. Keith Robinson scored 28 points against Southern and Jakob Dixon had 22. PRP is 8-1 against the region, including wins against Holy Cross and Jeffersontown, and 3-0 vs. the 21st District. Outside the region, the Panthers have beaten St. Xavier and DuPont Manual, so not a lot of high-quality wins here either. But they did beat Butler by 34 in last season's regional tournament and they haven't lost to DeSales since 2016, and that matters. 4. Butler (15-6): The Bears went 2-1, losing to LaRue County by 11 but bouncing back to beat Fern Creek, 55-47, and Iroquois 64-59 in overtime. Dontre Russell scored a team-high 17 points against Fern Creek. Butler is 6-0 vs. the region and 2-0 against 22nd District opponents. They have also beaten Male, Ballard and Fleming County. Four losses have come against Mason County, Eastern, Male and LaRue County. Beat DeSales last season by 21 and 10 points. Butler hosts DeSales Thursday. 5. DeSales (13-6): Beat Elizabethtown, 67-58, and barely defeated Doss 76-74 in overtime for a 2-0 week. Crew Gibson had a double-double of 16 points and 11 rebounds vs. Elizabethtown (12-6). The Colts have beaten Male, Simon Kenton and Eastern. They have losses to Trinity twice, Ballard, Warren Central and Calloway County. DeSales is 2-0 in the region and 2-0 against 22nd District foes. They have also beaten Iroquois. DeSales and Butler have played the most challenging schedules of any of the teams in the top five but you can't ignore the fact that PRP has been a major pain to both squads. 6. Iroquois (13-8): The Raiders went 1-1, beating Christian Educational Consortium (home school) and losing to Butler in overtime despite 23 points from Jordan Williamson. Have yet to win a district game in three tries but defeated Holy Cross by 18. 7. Holy Cross (14-7): The Cougars finished the week 1-1 with a loss to Anderson County and a win over Valley. They have beaten Fairdale. 8. Fern Creek (8-10): The Tigers went 2-1, beating Seneca and Jeffersontown and losing to Butler. Fern Creek is 5-2 against the region. The Tigers have also beaten Trinity. Fern Creek annihilated Fairdale by 30 last season, so Fairdale pretty much has to beat Fern Creek to be ranked ahead of them despite the better overall record right now. They play. Feb. 7. 9. Fairdale (14-6): The Bulldogs finished the week 3-0 with victories against Moore, Bullitt East and Bullitt Central. They have won four straight. Have beaten Beth Haven twice and Jeffersontown and is 7-3 vs. the region. 10. Jeffersontown (8-8): The Chargers went 2-1 with victories against Western and Floyd Central (IN) and a loss to Fern Creek. Genesis Nimely led the Chargers with 16 points vs. Western while Camron McDaniels added 15. Jeffersontown shot 52.4 percent from the field, 45.5 percent from 3-point range and 80 percent from the free throw line against Western. Against Fairdale, the Chargers shot 13-for-23 (56.5 percent) on free throws while losing by nine. 11. Beth Haven (14-6): The Bearcats split two games, beating the Louisville home school LKY, 73-71, and losing to Pleasure Ridge Park by 33. They are just 2-5 in the region, but 12-1 against everybody else. The loss to PRP dropped them to 1-4 vs. 21st District teams. 12. Bullitt East (6-13): The Chargers went 0-2 with losses to South Oldham and Fairdale. Have beaten Iroquois, Lou. Holy Cross and Doss. 13. Doss (5-16): The Dragons beat Valley and lost to DeSales in overtime for a 1-1 week. Have beaten Moore. 14. Moore (8-12): The Mustangs went 1-2 for the week, beating Bullitt Central and losing to Fairdale and Great Crossing. They have beaten Beth Haven and North Bullitt. 15. Southern (7-13): The Trojans went 1-1 with a loss to Pleasure Ridge Park and a win against North Bullitt. Southern also has a win vs. Iroquois and Bullitt Central. 16. North Bullitt (9-11): The Eagles went 0-3, losing to Evangel Christian, Southern and John Hardin. North Bullitt is 1-6 vs. the region, the win coming in a split of two games vs. Bullitt Central. 17. Bullitt Central (2-17): The Cougars endured an 0-4 week, losing to Hart County, Spencer County, Moore and Fairdale. 18. Valley (0-14): The Vikings went 0-3 with losses to Doss, Francis Parker and Lou. Holy Cross. 19. Whitefield Academy (5-12): Went 2-0. Beat the Louisville home school LKY and Covington Latin. The Wildcats have won four of their last seven.