5 Takeaways from a Saturday Watching Hoops
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Saturday afternoon I headed to Richmond for 2 games of the Kentucky National Guard Heroes Classic then a game and a half of the Central Bank Classic at Madison Central. Here’s what I learned by spending the day in Richmond.…
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Continue ReadingSaturday afternoon I headed to Richmond for 2 games of the Kentucky National Guard Heroes Classic then a game and a half of the Central Bank Classic at Madison Central. Here’s what I learned by spending the day in Richmond.
- Lexington Catholic is still figuring out roles. The Knights lost a 1 point game to Beechwood to set their record at 3-3 with 1/5 of the regular season complete. Right now they’re probably playing too many players and need to define roles. With a Senior class that have been predominantly role players until now and a group of Sophomores and Freshmen who are eager to contribute now, this team is going to have more defined roles as the season progresses. Sophomore Ben Johnson is their leading scorer and best player. After that, Lex Cath has to figure out their rotations and roles.
- Beechwood is a legitimate threat in the 9th region. The Tigers beat Lexington Catholic on a bucket by Senior CJ Brannen and are off to a 6-0 start. They beat Catholic without their starting point guard and with Sophomore star Scotty Draud having a bad game. Coach Goetz team has some quality depth, legitimate size and move the ball well. They have a date with Newport in the 9th region All A and they would have to get past Covington Catholic to get to Rupp Arena but they have a better shot than they’ve had in recent memory. Keep an eye out for Beechwood in the 9th.
- Waggener is for real. The team I saw on Saturday looked more like the team that beat Ballard for the first time in school history last week and less like the one that lost to St. X on Friday night. The Wildcats were missing their second leading scorer and rebounder Saturday when Cobie Montgomery was on the bench in a walking boot. Regardless, the result was never in doubt after the Wildcats jumped all over Lafayette early and led by double figures almost the entire game. The Waggener pressure caused all sorts of trouble for the Generals. Coach O’Neills team is 5-1 with the loss to St. X as the only blemish on their record and senior JJ Kalakon is one of the best in Louisville. Don’t be surprised if Waggener is competing for a title in the 7th region in March.
- Lafayette and Madison Central aren’t viable threats in the 11th region. It’s early to write anyone off but Scott County is so good that you have to be elite to beat them in the 11th region this season. Lafayette and Madison Central are not elite. Not right now. Of the two, Madison Central has a chance to keep improving because they have an elite rim protector and post scorer but their guards have to improve between now and February. They struggled with Somerset Saturday. I’ve seen Lafayette twice now and they just don’t have the talent this year to compete with the best teams in the region. Graduation hit them hard and their guards outside of Evan Dreux appeared scared to death against Waggener’s press. Coach Mendenhall does a good job but I don’t see the Generals being able to compete for a district or regional title this season.
- Lincoln County continues to improve. This was my third time seeing Lincoln County this season and it was their best showing yet. They still are a little too reliant on making a lot of threes to win a game but they were hot shooting the ball Saturday on their way to getting a running clock on Madison Southern. Senior Blake Smith hit shots, Bryston Alcorn and Elijah Frye scored in double figures and the Lincoln County zone gave the Eagles a lot of trouble as Junior Riley Bodner ended up with 6 steals on the back of the press and zone. If a relatively young Lincoln team can continue improving this year, they will be positioned to be big time contenders in the 12th region by the end of the season.