coach4life

I do not want to post his business on here but two schools have offered and one was to be a dual sport athlete in both track and basketball. The other offer is strictly basketball. He is getting D1 interest in track. He won the high jump last year but he also placed in the 110 hurdles at state too. Tremendous athlete and great kid.

Bray was at Ryle his freshman year, didn't play his sophomore year, was out with injuries most of last year at Lloyd. That's why most people have not heard of him. He has played aau the last few years and drew a lot of attention from coaches in the certified events. I remember he had at least 12 blocks against one of the Indy Elite teams, including a block on one end that ended with him dunking at the other end. Every time he blocked one of their players the coaches just shook their head. He can definitely play.

His highest in the high jump is 6'10 I believe. He won a national dunk competition 2 years ago on the aau circuit by jumping over a 6'7 teammate in the lane as his final dunk. It was pretty incredible to watch.

Last time I tested his vertical I think it was around 36-37 but that was over a year ago.

There is another athlete in NKY that I would put in the same category as Rice and that would be Tyler Bray of Lloyd. These 2 have played on the same AAU team before and have shown similar athletic ability. Bray is the better jumper and is faster and quicker off his feet. Rice has more skill and finesse and of course also gets up very high with better hang time. Tonights game with Lloyd and Holmes had these 2 going at it. Very fun to watch.

I had not heard that Ryan had decided to play this year. I'm very glad to hear this as he is a very good player and a great kid! He will definitely be an asset for Ryle this year.

He attempted to play hoops for Lloyd, but had two pretty serious injuries that sidelined him most of the year. At the beginning of the year he had a broken wrist when he when up for a dunk and someone undercut him. He taped it up and finished the game and I believe had 20 points. Then, he was back for maybe 2 games and he tore ligaments in his ankle when he came down on someone's foot. That sidelined him the rest of the year. He was very impressive on the AAU circuit last summer. He is not an offensive scoring threat unless it is above the rim, but defensively this kid can block and rebound. He is the quickest I have ever seen getting off the ground. A kid can pump fake and get him in the air and he will still be able to block your shot. He played freshman year at Ryle, sat out his sophomore year, and was hurt most of his junior year. I hope he plays basketball next year as a senior as he is easily one of the most impressive athletes in the 9th region. He played on the same AAU team last year with Dontel Rice and Bray gets up higher and is quicker off of the ground. Rice has much better ball skills and is much smoother. Those two high-flyers were very fun to watch last summer!

Bradley is playing and I heard he is playing both sides of the ball.

Tyler Bray is a first time track participant this year and qualified for the state meet in 4 different events. He placed 1st in the high jump with a jump of 6'8. He also placed 8th in the 110 hurdles. This kid is a tremendous athlete and still has another year!

I have heard of at least 4 of the teams in this tournament. Air Attack is a nice team from up in Northern Ohio. The Tennessee Tigers are always scrappy. The reason for the high price is because this is more like a showcase with McDonald' All American selection committee and recruiting services that will be there. My team played in this last year and it was really well run. There are 9 teams in the varsity field, which is about the same that was in the highly touted King of the South tournament this year. At least they have enough teams to field a tournament and do not cancel on the Thursday before the tournament!

Wildcat Showdown at KBA in Lexington is this weekend. Small but very well run tournament by the guy that runs Bearcat Classic.

Gabbard earned a full ride at WKU after the first semester. After the season he decided to transfer and will be going to Erskine.

Tate is playing with one of the Shining Stars teams but I'm not sure which one.

Last I heard Dontel was playing with Cincinnati Magic.

I didn't get to see them play, but I think Beckham was playing with Hoopdreams this weekend in Nashville. I could be wrong, but someone told me he played for them. KY had a few teams in this tournament with Hoopdreams, Charlotte Court, Next Level, and NKY Heat. Hoopdreams and Next Level played in the Championship game with Next Level winning the King of the South tourney.

NKY Heat won the nightcap over Tennessee Edge by double digits. Ja'Keith Pitts had to be close to a triple double with 12 points and several steals and assists in this game. Tyler Bray had a monster dunk leaving a step in front of the free throw line dunking it in traffic! He also had a nasty oop from Pitts on the baseline. They won their 4th game by double digits over Southern Illinois Advance. Jaleel Gray put on an absolute clinic with 35 points in that game. Their 5th game was interesting to say the least. It was a close game thoughout against a tough Hooplanet team from Atlanta. NKY Heat was up 2 at halftime and it was a 3 point game with 6 minutes left in the game, with the winner advancing to the Final Four. Tyler Bray, who had been the main player playing above the rim with the big boys from Atlanta, took a charge and hurt his back. He had to be escorted by ambulance to the nearest hospital. You could tell the team was really worried about him. They were all huddled around him as he was taken out on a stretcher. Nobody seemed to want to finish the game. After that happened, Gray and Knox both went out with injuries and JR Doss fouled out. They finished the game with 5 players and lost by 7. The entire team went to the hospital to be with their teammate after the game. The good news is that Tyler is going to be OK. He will need to rest for a few weeks and has to do some physical therapy but hopefully will be back in action soon. NKY Heat played great this weekend, but the best part of the weekend were the many compliments they received by the other coaches, officials, and fans. One official said it was refreshing to see such a good group of kids playing hard and not resorting to dirty play and trash talking. Another official complimented them on their sportsmanship and teamwork. An opposing fan came up to the team after they beat his son's team and said how exciting they were to watch and how they were the most fun team to watch in a long time. So, NKY was represent well in the Music City this weekend!

NKY Heat 17u is playing in the King of the South tournament in Nashville this weekend. They lost the first game to a good Charlotte Court team by about 10 points. They rebounded with an impressive 20 point win over Music City Ballers. They play Tennessee Edge tonight at 9:30.

NKY Heat is playing in the Bearcat Classic this weekend. They are a 17u team with a few unsigned seniors playing. One of the unsigned seniors is still 17, so he is an exception. Their 15u team is made up of mostly Holmes, Boone, and Scott players. I will have to find a roster for them. NKY Heat 17u D'vontae Bradley - Cooper Jaleel Gray - Holmes Danny Boateng - Boone Charles Knox - Holmes Ja'Keith Pitts - Boone Juwan Evans - Dixie JR Doss - Simon Kenton Tyler Bray - Lloyd Alex Webster - Cooper Dylan James - Ryle

NKY Heat 17u (plus 3 unsigned seniors) D'vontae Bradley - Cooper Jaleel Gray - Holmes Danny Boateng - Boone Charles Knox - Holmes Ja'Keith Pitts - Boone Juwan Evans - Dixie JR Doss - Simon Kenton Tyler Bray - Lloyd Alex Webster - Cooper Dylan James - Ryle

He was at Ryle 9th and 10th grade but then transfered to Lloyd his 11th grade year and will probably finish his high school career there. He was on the basketball team this year at Lloyd but sat out most of the year with 2 injuries. This is his first year ever doing track. I think his first attempt at the high jump about 1 month ago was 6'2. So apparently he has gained 4 inches on his jumps in just one month. I believe he already broke the record at Lloyd for the high jump. He has been racking up the medals. I believe he medaled in the high jump, long jump, 4x400, and 110 hurdles at this meet. He is also a very good basketball player and impressed several coaches last July with his athleticism.

Great pictures! The kid who tied the record in the high jump is Tyler Bray. The kid has serious hops. He won a dunk contest last summer in Cleveland by jumping over his 6'6 teammate.

NKY Heat 17/18 under will be playing their first tournament of the spring at the Bearcat Classic this weekend.

From what I was told Jaleel went on a college visit last week to Columbus State. I'm not sure how correct that is.