It's not quite March yet, but basketball fans are practically there.
The Kentucky High School Athletic Association regional basketball tournaments are set to begin Sunday as teams begin their journeys to Rupp Arena for the Sweet 16. Here are the local brackets and analysis:
Eighth Region boys
at Henry County
Draw is Sunday with two district finals Saturday night.
Field: Oldham County (18-10), North Oldham (15-11), Woodford County (24-5), Collins (22-5), Owen County (20-10), Gallatin County (17-11), Grant County (18-14), Walton-Verona (18-10).
RPI: 1. Collins .649, 2. Woodford .631, 3. WV .593, 4. Oldham .592, 5. N. Oldham .577, 6. Owen .558, 7. Grant .547 8. Gallatin .522,
What to watch: Walton-Verona and Mr. Basketball finalist Brant Smithers are on a roll after avenging earlier losses to Simon Kenton and Grant County to win the 32nd District. Collins and Woodford County have been the class of the region this season and meet Saturday in the 30th District final.
9th Region boys
at NKU’s BB&T Arena
Saturday, March 5: Highlands (22-8) vs. Lloyd Memorial (21-7), 1 p.m.; Covington Catholic (25-4) vs. Cooper (22-6), 2:30 p.m.; Dixie Heights (20-6) vs. Newport (9-18), 6:30 p.m.; Conner (20-9) vs. Holy Cross (20-9), 8 p.m.
Sunday, March 6: Highlands/Lloyd vs. CovCath/Cooper, 6:30 p.m.; Dixie/Newport vs. Conner/HC, 8 p.m.
Tuesday, March 8: Final, 7 p.m.
RPI: 1. CovCath .682, 2. Cooper .648, 3. Dixie .627, 4. Lloyd .609, 5. Highlands .605, 6. Conner .596, 7. Holy Cross .579, 8. Newport .452.
What to watch: The Ninth Region is enjoying one of its deepest and most successful seasons in recent years, with seven of the eight teams winning 20 or more games. The lone exception, Newport, has several talented players and is peaking at the end after beating Newport Central Catholic in the 36th District semifinals and challenging Highlands in the final.
Despite the balance, Covington Catholic, ranked third in the Associated Press state poll, is the team to beat. The Colonels are 9-0 against the region, including a 20-point win over Conner last week. CovCath also beat Dixie Heights by 20 earlier in the season, and is coming off a 39-point win over Holy Cross in the 35th District final.
CovCath, led by standout junior guard Evan Ipsaro and Mr. Basketball finalist Mitchell Rylee at center, did not play first-round opponent Cooper this season or reigning state champion Highlands, which faces upstart Lloyd in the first round. Lloyd beat the Bluebirds 91-78 on Feb. 8.
CovCath and Highlands, the only two Ninth Region teams to win a state title, could meet in the semis.
Conner, the 33rd District champions, beat Holy Cross by two (71-69) on Jan. 4, and lost by three to Dixie Heights on Feb. 7 without leading scorer Landen Hamilton. Holy Cross is led by the state’s leading scorer, Jacob Meyer, a junior who averages 38 points per game and became the school’s all-time leading scorer this week. Dixie defeated Newport by 28 on Dec. 17 (65-37).
10th Region boys
at Holmes
Wednesday: Mason County (23-5) vs. Bishop Brossart (12-18), 6 p.m.; George Rogers Clark (30-1) vs. Robertson County (13-19), 7:45 p.m.
Thursday: Campbell County (19-10) vs. Paris (7-20), 6 p.m.; Harrison County (19-8) vs. Bracken County (22-9), 7:45 p.m.
Monday, March 7: Mason/Brossart vs. GRC/Robertson, 6 p.m.; Campbell/Paris vs. Harrison/Bracken, 7:45 p.m.
Tuesday, March 8: Final, 7 p.m.
RPI: 1. GRC .693, 2. Mason .634, 3. Bracken .586, 4. Campbell .570, 5. Harrison .561, 6. Brossart .442, 7. Robertson .436, 8. Paris .394.
What to watch: In a somewhat controversial move, the regional tournament will be held at historic Holmes’ fieldhouse, which is a Ninth Region landmark and not in the 10th Region. Local fans who attend the tourney will have no shortage of marquee players to enjoy watching.
George Rogers Clark, top-ranked in the state, has dominated the region all season. Campbell County lost by 11 in the season opener, by far the closest game in GRC’s 12 10th Region wins.
GRC averages 88 points per game, including 114 in a win over Paris in the 40th District. The Cards are led by Division I prospect Jerone Morton and average eight 3-point makes a game.
Campbell County, led by leading scorer Aydan Hamilton and top post player Des Davie, is on another late-season run to the regional title. Campbell has won 11 straight games, including both 37th District games by more than 40 points. The Camels did not play Paris but have lost to potential semifinal opponents Harrison County and Bracken County earlier in the year. Campbell wouldn’t face GRC until the final.
The field also has Robertson County senior Justin Becker, the region’s Mr. Basketball finalist who has more than 3,100 career points entering the tournament, 25th in KHSAA history. He averages 32.5 this season.
Bracken County has sophomore Blake Reed, who averages 29 points a game, and freshman brother Cayden Reed, who averages 18. Blake Reed already has over 2,400 career points.
8th Region girls
at Grant County
Monday: Owen County (22-9) vs. North Oldham (12-17), 6 p.m.; Walton-Verona (15-13) vs. Spencer County (20-10), 8 p.m.
Tuesday: South Oldham (19-7) vs. Henry County (13-14), 6 p.m.; Simon Kenton (17-12) vs. Anderson County (26-4), 8 p.m.
Friday: Owen/North vs. WV/Spencer, 6 p.m.; South/Henry vs. SK/Anderson, 8 p.m.
Saturday: Final, 7 p.m.
RPI: 1. Anderson .681, 2. Owen .614, 3. Spencer .581, 4. SK .572, 5. S. Oldham .567, 6. WV .510, 7. N. Oldham .503, 8. Henry .440.
What to watch: Walton-Verona won the 32nd District with a buzzer-beating jumper from senior Audrey Carrico. The Bearcats beat Simon Kenton, which will look to extend the career of head coach Jeff Stowers, who will retire after the season. Stowers enters the tournament with 427 career wins.
Anderson County, a top-10 team in the state all season, is the prohibitive title favorite. All “A” state champion. Owen County will also be tough to beat.
9th Region girls
at NKU’s BB&T Arena
Sunday: Notre Dame (23-3) vs. Ryle (19-9), 1 p.m.; Newport Central Catholic (21-10) vs. Ludlow (25-10), 2:30 p.m.; Dixie Heights (24-7) vs. Highlands (12-16), 6:30 p.m.; Cooper (20-9) vs. Holy Cross (19-13), 8 p.m.
Wednesday: NDA/Ryle vs. NCC/Ludlow, 6:30 p.m.; Dixie/Highlands vs. Cooper/HC, 8 p.m.
Friday: Final, 7 p.m.
RPI: 1. NDA .718, 2. Cooper .633, 3. Ryle .630, 4. Dixie .617, 5. NCC .592, 6. HC .579, 7. Ludlow .555, 8. Highlands .500.
What to watch: Notre Dame, ranked fifth in the AP state poll, is the favorite in a deep field of contenders. Two of its three losses are to reigning state champion Sacred Heart, and another to highly ranked Bullitt East.
NDA is coming off a dominant 16-point win over George Rogers Clark, which was No. 1 in the Associated Press state poll at the time of the game Feb. 17. NDA is led by second team all-region senior guards Lacey Bradshaw and Macie Feldman and a stifling defense led by head coach Kes Murphy, who used the same style to lead Holy Cross to the 2015 state title. NDA allows only 40 points per game.
The Pandas get a tough test out of the gate against Ryle, the 2019 state champs and regional champs from 2018-20. NDA beat Ryle by 29 points on Feb. 15 and the Raiders will try to prove that was a fluke.
Reigning regional champion Dixie Heights, led by Miss Basketball finalist Madelyn Lawson, starts with Highlands Sunday night. Lawson has more than 1,900 career points and 1,000 rebounds.
Newport Central Catholic, coming off its first district championship since 2014, faces Ludlow in a battle of two of the top seniors in the region. NCC senior Rylee Turner, a Miss Basketball Finalist averaging 26 points per game, faces Ludlow forward Jenna Lillard, who averages 22.7 per game. Turner was also named the Ninth Region player of the year by the region coaches.
Cooper, coming off its first ever 33rd District championship, will take on Holy Cross. Cooper won by five on Jan. 21. Both are young teams. Cooper is led by first team all-region pick Whitney Lind, and Holy Cross by sophomore Julia Hunt, who averages 16 points per game. Cooper avenged two earlier losses to Ryle to win the district final by 11.
Notre Dame beat Cooper by 11 this season and did not play Dixie, who defeated the Pandas in last year’s regional final.
10th Region girls
at Nicholas County
Monday: Bishop Brossart (19-10) vs. Bracken County (14-10), 6 p.m.; George Rogers Clark (27-2) vs. Pendleton County (17-14), 7:45 p.m.;
Tuesday: Nicholas County (15-12) vs. Montgomery County (19-12), 6 p.m.; Campbell County (11-18) vs. Mason County (17-9), 7:45 p.m.
Friday: Brossart/Bracken vs. GRC/Pendleton, 6 p.m.; Nicholas/Montgomery vs. Campbell/Mason, 7:45 p.m.
Saturday, March 5: Final, 7 p.m.
RPI: 1. GRC .706, 2. Montgomery .602, 3. Brossart .578, 4. Mason .548, 5. Nicholas .495, 6. Bracken. 489, 7. Pendleton .489., 8. Campbell .475.
What to watch: GRC, ranked third in the AP poll after a few weeks at No. 1, is the prohibitive favorite to win the title, which was won by Brossart last year. GRC is 11-0 against region foes, with every win by at least 19 points, and several by much more.
Brossart, the reigning champion, won the 37th District. The Mustangs beat Bracken County twice this year, by 31 and 11 points. A Mustangs win likely pits them against GRC. The Camels, who have struggled on offense, lost by 11 to Mason County Feb. 1.
Source link
