Bballjunkie

I wouldn’t disagree with you on that . Steve Simpson can flat out coach.

Yes, I have only heard through a third party but it got really ugly with accusations of verbal , emotional abuse by Coach Gaither towards the player . Heard the parent was a problem from day 1. I don’t know Coach Gaither really great but I know people who do. I am told he is regarded as a great family man.

South Oldham

North Oldham will be in the top 5 by January.

Arguably the best coach in the 8th region, Chris Gaither, was told by administration yesterday he is suspended until further notice from coaching. No details are being shared at this time from my sources. Although, I have no info I do know he dealt with an over the top mom last year and her son ended up transferring. Not sure if this is related . anyone have any info?

Not sure the details but I do know that dad was the asst coach and something happened with him and the head coach. Mom was the asst principal and she left as well. I am zero knowledge of what happened but when dad, mom and son leave something definitely went down .

Any scores from today?

Thanks for update.

Ballard has one of the best young post players in the country. He is young and he is still growing. 6’11 Mason Grivna is very skilled Ballard vs Male will be a battle of the two of the best centers that the city of Louisville has ever seen at such a young age!

This game is no longer listed on Khsaa website. Wonder if North dropped them after Boogie and Cole enrolled at Ballard. Interesting ?!?!?!?

Would love to know the scores of these games after today. Couple of our 8th region teams playing in the jamboree!

Cool. Let us know how that scrimmage goes.

Cool . Good info. Oldham County under Jason Holland had it rolling then so that team must have been really good .

Thanks. Any word from HC during the preseason practices ? I have them ranked higher than Catpause does. Looking for them to have a great season. Whats the best Henry County team in the last 50 years?

Perfect. Thank you for posting that.

If Cole get eligible, Ballard is going to be great !!!

Anyone know of any scrimmages this week involving 8th region teams?

Anyone know of any scrimmages this week in the region?

I am being told it’s a one and done at Ballard. Prep school is his goal is what I am hearing from multiple folks

Might have a good point. I think Renner learned a lot from last year. Coaching in the 7th region and in the 8th region is totally different with different type of athletes in both areas.

Thank you for the info… that definitely changes things for that squad

We are 1 month away from the popcorn machines across the 8th region being fired up. I can't wait for this season to get underway. Last season, the Dragons from South Oldham caught fire at the right time of the season and rode that hot shooting all the way to the Final 4 of the Sweet 16. Who will be the team heading to Lexington come March and representing our great region at Rupp Arena? Well, its pretty simple. Most everyone that keeps up with the 8th region would agree that its North Oldham’s region to lose. They have the most talent, they have a great coach, they have developed a great winning culture….. pretty much the recipe to being a team that not only can win the region but will be able to compete to win the whole thing. The Mustangs are deep and they good at every positions. They have so many quality players I can't list them all but the 4 that stick out to me are: the two headed monsters down low in Daniels and Gregg, along with their back court of Sears and Rondo. What's crazy about this team is their second team might be the second best team in the region. That is how much talent is in the Goshen/Prospect area. It will be fun to see if anyone can compete again them. I am putting them in their own tier. Everyone else is in one of the other 4 tiers. (see below) Tier 1 (the champs)- North Oldham Tier 2 (could possibly upset North on a really really good night)- Woodford County and South Oldham Tier 3 (Solid teams)- Henry County , Spencer County, Collins, Simon Kenton Tier4 (close but not there yet)- Oldham County, Walton Verona, Owen County, Anderson County Tier 5 (Below avg team)- Eminence, Shelby County, Grant County, Gallatin County, Trimble County, Carroll County, Williamstown, Cornerstone Chr. 1. North Oldham: I don’t believe since I have been watching the 8th region ,which has been for 2 decades, has there been a more clear Number 1 preseason team. The Mustangs are simply going to be a really good team and in my opinion a team that could not only win the 8th region but will have a chance the win the whole thing. Could 2026 be the first ever state championship for North Oldham Boys Basketball? It definitely is a possibility. The team just has so many weapons. I think the key to the team and possibly the best player is Tommy Gregg. He is 6’7 and he can dribble pass and shoot. He is a matchup nightmare. Next, Austin Sears is one of the best guards in the state with multiple D1 offers already. He is not tall, he is not overly fast, but the kid is just really good at basketball. North has a group of Juniors that haven’t lost much in their career. North should absolutely dominate this season in the 8th region. 2. Woodford County: The Yellowjackets are an interesting team with some really good talent. #2 might be too high for them but I am putting them there because I think they have a few special players that can win games night in and night out. Omari Joiner is going to have a big year coming off an injury last year. Joiner is a playmaker that can take over a game. Right behind him is Thurman Wade who avg in double figures last season. Josiah McKee and Wyatt Peters are set to have a big year.. Every year I have the same complaint, I just wish Woodford played more Region opponents. They play against their district opponents and that is it. It is hard to move them up and down the ranking because they don’t play the rest of the region throughout the year. With that said, I think they are one of the only teams that have a chance to upset North in the post season play. 3. South Oldham: The Dragons lost their best player, their tallest player and their best shooter to graduation and I am keeping them in the top 3 because they are going to be GOOD. The run South made last year all the way to the Final 4 was amazing and it is apparent each and every year that Steve Simpson can flat out coach. He is not a spring chicken but somehow he does a great job of relating to his players and getting them to buy into his program and his philosophy. Senior, Kolton Wuchterl is coming off a state tourney that he will never forget. He racked up 10 made threes in one game breaking an all-time record at the Sweet 16. He will look to be a 20point per game scoring this season and lead his team. They have some other impressive pieces as well. Joaqin Siakim didn’t get much playing time last year but he is coming off a great summer he will be a key member of this years team. He is tall and athletic and can attack the rim with the best of them. Drew Campbell, Zander Searcy, and Adrian Miles will look to have another great season. Other than Woodford, I think South Oldham is the only other team hat has a chance of upsetting North in the post season. The main reason for that is South is not afraid of North. They have beaten them before and will not back down from them. It will be fun to watch. 4. Henry County: This pick might surprise some people, but I don’t care lol. I believe the Wildcats are going to have one of the best Henry County teams in the history of the school. They have everyone returning from an 18 win season last year and they have picked up a couple solid transfers. Baylor Nolin was one of the top players in the region last year avg right under 25ppg. He is a kid that can score on all three levels. He is excited about leading his team to another district championship and making a run in the regionals. However, Mr Nolin will not have to do everything by himself. Traevon Wright will have the ball in his hands a lot this season running the show. He can create his shot and create shots for others. Baylor and Traevon along with the returning starters and also a couple key transfers will be a group that is working hard in the preseason to make sure they make school history for the 2025-26 season. 5. Spencer County: Not sure how much talent Spencer County has from top to bottom, all I know is that they have a great culture and a great coach. Because of that I have given them the top 5 spot on the list. Coach Burns has it rolling in Taylorsville and these boys will overachieve this season. They do have some nice pieces coming back from a 20 win season from a year ago. Samual Seawright will be the leader of the game and has experienced a lot of big wins in his career. He will teach the young guys how the Bears compete night in and night out. Along with Seawright, the Armstrong boys will look to have big year as well. The 6’5 twins have gotten better each and every year since I first same them at 8th graders so I expect them to have big years. Brady Smith is also a key to the Bears competing with Collins and Woodford to win a District Championship. 6. Collins Similar to Spencer one of the big reason I have Collins in the 6th spot is that they have a GREAT coach. Gaither just knows how to motivate and he knows how to coach. Another Gaither is the key to this team though. Caden Gaither, son of Coach Gaither, is a really good two way player that effects the game on both ends. Caden will have a big year for the Titans. If the rumors are true then their best athlete, Kade Goodin, is not playing basketball this year. I hope its just a rumor because Kade is a special athlete. The Titans have some really good Sophomores as well. The boys from Simpsonville will be ready to compete to win a District Championship. 7. Simon Kenton : The Pioneers are a team that will always be competitive no matter how talented the team is. Coach Steiner has a program and culture that always expect to win. The group from last year won 24 games and a big part of their team graduated. Jay Bilton is a great all-around playing is coming back and excited about leading this group to another District 32 championship. If this group wins 20 games and gets to the regional tournament it will be a successful season 8. Oldham County; The Colonels was stung with injury bug last year and only won 12 games, the lowest win total for the school in over 15 years. Will this group win more than 12 games this year, it will be close. The Colonels are led by freshman standout, Ty Bryant. However there are other pieces that will look to have a big season. Will Hinkle is a senior who has gotten a lot of minutes the last 3 years, he is a kid with a high motor that can make things happen. If their Colonels have a winning season it will be a huge accomplishment for this group. 9. Walton Verona: When you lose the all time scoring leader for your high school, you will probably drop down in the rankings. Aaron Gutman was a great player but there is another Gutman there to pick up where he left off. Adam will look to have a huge season along with his teammates Wyatt Shearer, Duece Shearer and Cole Dryden . The Bearcats will try to upset Simon Kenton in the District tournament if that happens it will be 10. Owen County The Rebels from Owenton won 20 games last year with a team that had 4 seniors. That is the bad news, the good news is they return 3 starters including Michael Smith. He will be a walking double double this year. Look for Michael to avg 18 ppg and 10ppg this year and carry his team to another winning season. Owen is the only district opponent that can somewhat compete with Henry County. The most important thing for this group is the growth of their younger guys. If a few guys can make contributions, then this group should be in the regionals tourney easily. 11. Anderson County The Bearcats are a team that on paper should be awful. They graduated 11 seniors off last years team. Yes you read that right “11”. But this could be the team that could move up the rankings more than any other team. Why? Because Sophomore Noah Beasley is that good. He will be a threat to have a triple double every night. Also Anderson got a bit of good news when Andrew Sparrow, a 6’5 Mercer County player, transferred in this summer. So I am looking forward to seeing this team play. It would be really cool if they won more games this year than last after losing almost a dozen seniors to graduation. 12. Eminence Typically the Warriors are not this high in the preseason ranking but this years group is ready to compete and they have their sights on the regional tournament. Coach Gabbard is really excited about this group and he should be. He returns his leading scorer from last year Brady White who is a three year starter. He also has Greyson Tingle returning who is long and athletic. I am excited to watch this group and see if they are for real and have a legitimate chance at getting to their regional tournament for the first time since 2017 13. Shelby County The Rockets have been bad for a long time but this year I believe they will start making a turn to a more competitive group. They only won 4 games last year and I believe they can double that win total. Josh Leslie is the new coach. Although his stop at Oldham County wasn’t very success the guy can coach. I believe he will bring some excitement to this team. Sophomore Xadrian Johnson and Junior Gunnar Rhodes will be the leaders of the team and they will set the tone for this program on Day 1. 14. Grant County Grant lost its best player and all region selection Ben Bosse. The group won 10 games last year. With that said, I believe another double digit win season is a possibility because they have some kids that got some valuable experience last year and their JV team was really competitive. Nate Hamm will be the leader of this team that can explode for a lot of points on any given night. The supporting cast will be the key for Coach Jones’ group. He really needs those boys to keep improving. 15. Gallatin County The Wildcats won 19 games last year and made it to the regionals. However, this year will be much different. They lost 6 players to graduation off last years team who all played and contributed. It will be a total rebuilding season for the boys at Warsaw. 16. Trimble The Raiders won 6 games last year and they are primed to get that number to double digits this season. Coach Brent Wilty is excited about who is coming back this season. He believes they can surprise some people . 17. Carroll County Lost a big time scorer off last years team but they have a group of Juniors that want to keep building this program to getting better and better each season. Coach Harden likes this group and think that a winning season is something they can definitely achieve. 18. Williamstown It’s a small school in Northern KY that really needs to find schools on their schedule they can compete with. They won only 5 game last year and lost a 18ppg scorer. 19. Cornerstone Christian This group didn’t play a full season last year in its first KHSAA season but this season they look to play more and become a better team each and every night they step onto the floor. Top 20 players in the region 1. Tommy Gregg (North Oldham)- a matchup nightmare. He is 6’7 who can score in the post, in the mid-range and can shoot the three. 2. Austin Sears (North Oldham)- the most skilled player in the region.. He is not tall, he is not overly quick…. He is just really really good. 3. Baylor Nolin (Henry County)- he will go down as one of the best players in the history of Henry County basketball. 4. Ty Bryant (Oldham County)- rated as the 2nd best freshman in the state of Kentucky who can score on all 3 levels. 5. Omari Jointer (Woodford County)- the quickest kid in the region that can get to the bucket and create his own shot with the best of them. 6. Noah Beasley (Anderson County)- is a bigger guard that is hard to guard. He will have to put Anderson on his shoulders this season. 7. Kolton Wuchterl (South Oldham)- went from an unknown to a high school legend after his state tournament performance last season. This year the ball will be in his hands more. 8. Caden Gaither (Collins)- a coaches kid that can just play. High IQ kid that can shoot it and create shots for others. 9. Samuel Seawright (Spencer County)- he is 5’10 but he plays bigger than that. He will be the heart and soul of the team this season. 10. Bray Bilton (Simon Kenton)- a do-it-all kind of guard that will be relied on to do a lot this season. He is a kid that has been battled tested and he is ready to shine. 11. Colin Daniels (North Oldham)- football is his main sport but his presence inside is the glue that holds a top 5 team together this season. 12. Traevon Wright (Henry County)- he is the quarterback of this team on the court. He is hard to guard and is great getting this teammates involved as well. 13. Will Henkle (Oldham County)- tough,small guard that is not afraid to put his head down and attack the rim. 14. Pierre Rondo (North Oldham)- 8th grader that plays like a Senior. It helps to have a NBA champion dad to learn from but he is his own player that is ready to put on a show this season. 15. Joaquin Siakam (South Oldham)- he had a big off season, he is taller and stronger than he was last year. Look for him to have a big year. 16. Michael Smith (Owen County)- avg 10ppg and 8rpg last reason.. Look for both of those numbers to be bigger this season. 17. Brady While (Eminence)- has played a ton of minutes in his career. This is a year he could score A LOT of points given the opportunity. 18. Thurman Wade (Woodford County)- averaged double figures last year in scoring. He is ready to lead Woodford along with back court teammate, Omari Jointer, to a district championship and a regional run. 19. Adam Gutman (Walton-Verona)- a long-range sniper. Once he gets across mid court he is in range. 20. Adrian Miles (South Oldham)- a good athlete that has improved his three point shooting.

How in the world will he get eligible ? Enrolled and already had tryouts at CAL. Now at Ballard. I know Khsaa doesn’t have many rules but surely there is a rule against this.

Massive news out of CAL.

You can buy the magazine at a lot gas stations throughout Kentucky. I preordered mine online a couple months ago and it came in a couple weeks ago.