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Please don't take this as a slam at the BOK Center where the 2009 10th Region Tournament was held. I attended last year, attended the year before that when it was at Montgomery Co., and have attended every 10th Region Tournament for nearly 40 years. The BOK Center is a magnificent facility and I heard only raves from the players and coaches who participated in the tournament directly last year. They loved playing there. However, the atmosphere last year, compared to the atmosphere this year at the Mason County Fieldhouse......there is no comparison!! I would guess a crowd in excess of 5000 tonite in the Fieldhouse. Bands playing, fans cheering, bodies packed close to each other...it brought back a lot of fond memories. Last year, I really don't think the crowd was as big...if it was, it was swallowed up by the much-bigger arena. I simply think the BOK Center, though a great facility, just doesn't have the same ambiance of either the Fieldhouse or the Montgomery Co. facility. The atmoshphere tonight, and thorughout the tournament, is what has made the 10th Region Tournament second to none among regional tournaments in this state.

In response to a much earlier post on this thread, the three officials that worked the 10th Region title game tonite were Bart Lenox, Terry Smith and Eric Thornsbury. It was a well officiated game, called straight down the middle. No phantom calls, no unnecessery calls, no blatently missed calls. A few calls here and there that were of the 50/50 variety that always incenses half the crowd. However, after the smoke cleared, the officials melted into the background in this one, which is what everyone wants anyway. The players determined the outcome, which is the way it should be.

Did they ever have a player in the late 70s or early 80s named Slaughter? Leonard Slaughter maybe???

Thought you would be in Maysville tonite, Mustang.

Ray Graham had an outstanding career at Harrison County. He overcame a couple of down years when folks were demanding his scalp. He is one of the best coaches I have seen in being adaptable, based on the personnel he has available. He began at Harrison County using the wing-t, went to the wishbone when he had a strong stable of running backs, went to a pass-oriented offense when he had the Faulkner kid at QB, used the I-formation when he had a stud tailback. Defensively, he has utilized the 7-diamond; the stunt 4-3; 5-2; 5-3; 4-4. He is probably the best I have ever seen at setting and implementing a defensive game-plan for coming opponents. The biggest issues concerning Ray were his play-calling at times...fake punts from deep in his own territory; passing late in a game instead of running the clock; not passing enough when he had great running teams, etc... Criticisms that always came following a tough loss...not virgin territory for most coaches. He is the best motivator and role model that Henry County could hope to get. He is a "young" 50-something year old man and probably has another 10 years or so in him. A great hire for the Wildcats!!

$4500 win for the Polar Bears. Regardless of how things may play out for them from here on, there will be a bunch of teams wishing they were in a regional tournament....like Lexington Catholic and others.

Very impressed with Mason County in this one. They play hard, they play together, they shoot it well, defend well and rebound it well. Those that are conceding the 10th Region title this year to GRC, may be a bit premature, though I think the Cards are still the better squad. However, when you get to the 10th Region Tournament, especially when it is held at The Fieldhouse, strange things can happen. If you forecast that the Royals and the Cardinals will win their respective district tournaments...and most people can't see either losing those tournaments...both will then draw a runner-up in the first round of the regional. The runnerup in the 38th, 39th and 40th will pose no threat to either of those teams, but don't discount the runner-up from the 37th as being a potential giant-killer in the first round.

Many of you seem to be bleeding players over from the 1990s into the 2000s. As someone said in a previous post, this is supposed to be players from just the 2000s, though all the players mentioned, regardless of "century" were fine players.

The "old" 10th Region had some real snake pit gyms, with tremendous home court advantages: The "swimming pool" gym at Fleming Co.; the old Bracken Co. gym; Southside Gymnasium at Paris; the old gym at Bath Co.; Maysville's gym; Mt. Sterling's gym; a game or two was played at the old gym at Bourbon Co. in the 70s; MMi's gym; the over-hanging balcony at Augusta's gym; Deming's gym. All of these venues had relatively small seating capacities, most of the team benches were on the first row of the bleachers, packed houses for every game, extremely hot or extremely cold locker rooms...never comfortable; virtually no parking for fans; the era when referees were not assigned, but were contracted by the home school coaches; many gyms that had entrances from directly outside right into the gym, which led to slippery conditions on slushy and cold winter nights...IT WAS ALL GOOD!! Great memories. If you won on the road in these gyms, you were pretty good. If you won consistently on the road, you were REALLY good.

This most recent decade and century are one and the same, I think.

Is this the girls draw or boys draw, or both?

That's a mucho different situation, though there is now a movement afoot to disallow the practice of hosting prep schools that may be playing other prep schools as well.

The 38th District Draw was held today at Harrison County. Here are the results: Monday, Feb. 22 -- 6:30 Deming vs. Pendleton County (girls); 8:15 Deming vs. Pendleton County (boys) Tuesday, Feb. 23 -- 6:30 Harrison County vs. Nicholas County (girls); 8:15 Harrison County vs. Nicholas County (boys). Thursday, Feb. 25 -- Girls finals 7:30 Friday, Feb. 26 -- Boys finals 7:30 All games at Harrison County High School

The 38th District Draw was held today at Harrison County. Here are the results: Monday, Feb. 22 -- 6:30 Deming vs. Pendleton County (girls); 8:15 Deming vs. Pendleton County (boys) Tuesday, Feb. 23 -- 6:30 Harrison County vs. Nicholas County (girls); 8:15 Harrison County vs. Nicholas County (boys). Thursday, Feb. 25 -- Girls finals 7:30 Friday, Feb. 26 -- Boys finals 7:30 All games at Harrison County High School