3 Up, 3 Down – Week 3
Hard to believe we’re already into the Christmas tournament season but here we are. There are going to be a whole lot of games in the next 2 weeks and some schools will start to separate themselves as state title contenders while others will fall back to earth after their strong starts. Here’s a look at the schools and players whose stock is on the rise and those who are on the decline.
Stock Up: Daviess County – The Panthers started this season by getting manhandled by Madisonville 78-50 but since that game, they haven’t looked back. Coach Neil Hayden’s team has rattled off 6 straight wins, including a win over Bowling Green and 2 district wins over Owensboro and Owensboro Catholic. The Panthers have 4 players currently averaging in double figures, led by Blake Boswell with 15.4 per game.
Stock Down: Hopkinsville – The Tigers have been battling injuries and suspensions in recent weeks. They dropped two of three games last week, including a district loss to University Heights. Coach Haworth’s group currently sits at 3-3 and it appears that UHA may now be the team to beat in the 2nd region. Especially if Hoptown can’t recover and get back to their winning ways soon.
Stock Up: Waggener – The Wildcats have quietly started the season 6-0, including 3-0 against 7th region foes. They face a tough stretch this week as they are on the road at Scott County Tuesday, at Holmes on Thursday then take on George Rogers Clark on Friday at Rowan County. If they can get to Christmas with 9 or 10 wins, they can start to stake their team to being a top team in the 7th region and possibly in the state.
Stock Down: Male – After a strong start to their season, Male fell back in the middle of the 7th region pack this past week. The Bulldogs lost to Fern Creek, Butler and Mason County as their record fell to 5-3. Sophomores Noah Courtney and Howard Fleming are averaging double figures and Junior Hunter McCutcheon is no longer on the Male roster. If anyone has any idea what happened there, please let us know.
Stock Down: Adair County – The Indians went 32-2 a season ago and were a point away from making the trip to Rupp Arena. This year they have limped out to a 4-3 start including double digit losses to Mercer County and Elizabethtown. It appears that anyone who can keep up with Adair’s pace can beat them. They’ve given up 91, 83 and 73 points in the three losses. I’m sure Zion Harmon would like to see someone step up at Adair like Terry Taylor did at Bowling Green last season. Harmon isn’t capable of doing it all.
Stock Up: LaRue County – Staying in the 5th region, the Hawks of LaRue are off to a 6-0 start with 5 double digit wins. They have a showdown with John Hardin on Tuesday night. Junior forward Anthony Adkins is leading the Hawks with 14 points and 7 rebounds per contest. Adkins was also named Game MVP after their win over Muhlenberg County. We will know much more about LaRue after the game against John Hardin on Tuesday.