QueenoftheSouth

It looks like Pulaski’s Fraley has been back for two games now. Is he healthy and what do you think his return does for them in terms where they could be ranked over the next couple of weeks? Are they a potential top 2 team with a healthy Fraley?

They’ve done that once in 16 games so that is highly unlikely. But I don’t think they have to make threes to beat Danville. The danger could be that they take too many and shoot that low percentage. But they should win this one comfortably with never shooting a three.

Danville comes into this game with a 3-12 record, most recently beating Garrard and losing to Somerset by 27. Paige is their best player, averaging 18 PPG. It will be interesting to see what he can do against an athletic Boyle backcourt, and whether he can get enough help to give the Ads a chance. Boyle enters the game at 5-11, on the heels of losses at East Jessamine by 20 and at home to Lincoln. For all of the talk about Boyle’s shooting woes, Brown has shot the ball well. He’s shooting 45% & 37% from three, and had 27 in their last game against Lincoln. I think he has become Boyle’s best player and I look for him to have a big game against his former team. From a talent standpoint, I feel like this should be an easy win for Boyle. I’ll go with Boyle by 20+.

No argument here.

Mercer won by 30+.

Good analysis. I totally agree with your tiers of teams.

He will be eligible a couple weeks before district play. The risk is it could cause chemistry issues that late in the season, but the upside of adding him is huge. He may be their most talented player, and he definitely adds to their depth, which is their biggest weakness. So their front line will be 6’11” & 6’9” & 6’4”, and all are athletic. There’s a lot of size in the 12th this year, but nothing like that!

Coach Jackson continues to earn his reputation as a wizard on the sideline. This should be a major rebuilding year for them! Lincoln returned 1 starter and a grand total of 9 PPG from last year’s roster. Yet Jackson takes them on the road to Boyle tonight and beats a team that returns 5 kids that started last year (3 at Boyle and 2 at Danville), and that had 53 PPG returning from last year.

I agree that they’re the clear favorite, but I don’t think the lack of postseason experience matters. There isn’t a ton of that experience on most of the top 6 teams. Keep in mind DCA lost 2 key players from last year’s team. They did add an important piece in Fugate. BUT they look like a totally different team this year and I attribute that, at least in part, to the addition of Coach Conley to their staff. They are a much more disciplined and efficient team this year than last.

Look forward to seeing how this one turns out. The 2 top teams in the region at this point in the season.

It shouldn’t be this way. In addition to Turner, Brown is a very capable shooter, and Quisenberry can get hot and has a great mid-range game. Bixler can make a lot happen as well if given the opportunity. Relative to the 12th, this team has plenty of talent and enough shooting to win their regional games. Shot selection, offensive sets and player rotations continue to plague them. They have 3 returning starters and added two of Danville’s starters. But the reasons they struggle offensively (noted above) are very much the same as last year.

Wow, that’s interesting. This was a lot closer than I would’ve thought, even with some foul trouble.

Given that they’re both guards playing up top, 13 steals for kids with that kind of speed could equate to 26+ points. Probably at least 20. And that’s your difference in the game. If you don’t have a solid backcourt, you don’t want to face Boyle. And that makes them a tough matchup for a lot of teams in the 12th. But if a team has the guard play to limit turnovers and make them score in the half court, it’s a different game. I think DCA & Somerset can do that, and perhaps Pulaski if they get Fraley back.

Harlan appears to be an even worse loss.

Wayne just isn’t playing well at all right now. In thier last 4 games against in-state teams, their lone win was Somerset Christian. Their 3 losses came against teams with combined records of 5-21, and their last two games were losses by 16 (to a 3-8 Boyle team) & by 21 (to a 1-6 Warren Central team).

Yes, I disagreed with you previously. You were correct and I was not. Their rotation lacks size, structure and chemistry. I expected different rotations and didn’t anticipate the chemistry issues given that there were I believe only two new players being introduced to the system and team. And Tarter did bring a level of intensity that is hard to replace and frankly is unmatched by just about any player anywhere. But that doesn’t explain all of the issues cited. I’m not as confident as you that it will come down to those two teams, but it also wouldn’t surprise me. I do think Somerset would be my pick at this point, but there’s so little margin for error this year.

Boyle lost to Lexington Catholic last night 96-37. They are now 3-9 and have lost by 27, 38 & 59 points. They don’t yet have a quality win and I believe they were picked top 2-3 pre-season. Very surprising, to say the least.

Somerset has separated from the pack at this point in the season. It’s I don’t think there’s any argument that they’re the best team right now.

That’s a really impressive win. They are humming along.

They shouldn’t be doing this. Jackson ALWAYS gets more out of his teams than you think. ALWAYS.

Catholic seems to be on another level right now. Tomorrow should be interesting.

Christmas tournament games mean less than other games played Christmas week? Learn something new every day!

Just looked it up and Tarter averaged 14 RPG last year and had 19 in their regional game. That’s Rodman like numbers. That level of a rebounder just can't’ be replaced.

I’m not saying it doesn’t fit them. I think it’s wise of them to change to that being their default, and I do think they’ve looked good defensively. I’ve just never liked points allowed being a measure of the quality of D. You almost never see a high scoring offensive team fare well in that measure. It’d be tough for them to do so just due to the number of possessions their opponents will have relative to the team that plays a slow pace.

Boyle isn’t any worse off this year in terms of 3 point shooters. They have Turner back and he’s a year older. He shot 35% last year and If they get him more (quality) looks, they should shoot better from three as a team than they did last year (29% overall). I also think the addition of Bixler gives them a better second option from deep than they had last year. Point being I think they have some kids that can shoot it well enough if they get quality looks. But they don’t have the roster where they should try to be a 3 point shooting team. Nor did they last year.