Five Takeaways: Kentucky Bank Shootout
Last Friday and Saturday, 7 teams converged at Bourbon County High School for the Kentucky Bank Shootout. This shootout features some of the best teams from the Lexington and surrounding areas to compete at this great event. Here are some…
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Continue ReadingLast Friday and Saturday, 7 teams converged at Bourbon County High School for the Kentucky Bank Shootout. This shootout features some of the best teams from the Lexington and surrounding areas to compete at this great event. Here are some takeaways from each game…
Game 1: Paris (59) @ Bourbon County (70)
Only one game was played on Friday night, as one of the featured games in the shootout, it wasn’t a disappointment. Paris, KY is split between two fanbases, you either root for Bourbon County or Paris Independent for high school athletics. Before this game, a couple of quick notes to know is that Paris has ran the rivalry winning the previous 14 matchups. Also, the overall series was tied at 90 for both teams dating all the way back to 1955. This was a close matchup until the last 4 min of the game when Bourbon pulled away after a couple costly turnovers by Paris. Bourbon also was hot coming off a late 4th quarter win over region foe Mason County. The junior guard duo transfers from Frederick Douglass shined in this game, Nakwan and Nakyir Joyce both look to transform this program into wining ways. Along with the twins, senior wing Jace Wallace has the ability to take over games and do anything his team needs. Paris also came to play, senior foward Jalen Byars scored 25 points and 11 rebounds in this contest and is solidifying himself as a top 10 player in the region. Also, 2019 G Travis Stings and 2020 G Jamuan Clark make quite the backcourt duo combining for 23 points in the loss.
Game 2: Frankfort (64) v. Butler (71)
Butler entered this matchup 4-1 and competing for the 6th Region title. Being one of the top teams in their region it was exciting to watch them play. Senior guard Reese Tolley was explosive in this game, I wasn’t able to keep stats cause I made it late 3Q, but he is one of the top guards in his class (2019). Also the junior tandem of guards/wings Trey Minter and Cam Underwood are special and will keep Butler Basketball in contention for next year as well. Butler is in good hands with head coach Kentreal Goodin and I believe they are favorites to come out of their region. Frankfort didn’t disappoint either, coming ready to face one of the best teams in Louisville. 2019 G Juanya Frank came into this matchup averaging 11 ppg and 5 rpg. He stood out to me as the floor general this team needs. Both of these teams come from competitive regions, but unlike Butler, I’m afraid Frankfort just doesn’t have the tools to compete with the other teams in the 11th Region (Scott County, Lexington Catholic, Henry Clay, Frederick Douglass). Im projecting them to be middle of the pack and maybe having a shot to win their district.
Game 3: Scott (49) v. Henry Clay (66)
Henry Clay has some competitors on their team. Various polls has the Blue Devils as the 6th ranked team in the state and #2 in their region. But in my opinion after watching them play I’d have to disagree. Yes they have the tools to make a region run, but as a unit they lack in several areas needed to make a run in March at Rupp. 2020 G Marques Warrick impressed me with his ability to create shots. He comes in at our #3 guard in his class and proves that every time he’s on the court. He finished this contest with 23 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. Also, 2019 wing Keaston Brown is one of the best shooters in the 11th Region, he is also one of the tallest players on his team coming in around I’d say 6’3, Brown finished with 16 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists. Another player who stood out to me was 6’4 F Harris Hawkins who was a point and a rebound away from a double-double. Henry Clay is a dark horse of the region if they are able to score the ball consistently, unfortunately they lack the height to compete against Scott County or Madison Central, which has me hesitant to key them in as favorites for the 11th. Scott came into this game with some big victories over Pendleton County and Mason County. But were just unable to hit shots through out the duration of the game. Senior guard Trey Meister picked it up after halftime to rack up 15 points and 5 rebounds. Trey is one of the best pure shooters in the 10th Region and his workload will need to increase for their success. Also, senior guard David Hunter is one of the biggest surprises this season, he constantly pushes the Eagles to success contributing night in and night out. He finished with 10 points, 4 rebounds, and 3 assists. Scott unfortunately won’t have the ability to rebound from this game when they host the #2 team in the state Covington Catholic on Tuesday.
Game 4: Paris (68) v. West Jessamine (79)
West Jessamine is a powerhouse out of the 12th Region and their dominance was shown in this game. The Colts came into this game with a record of 4-1 and currently are dominating Paris, KY with wins over both teams in the city. Senior guard Dalton Bruner is averaging 21.3 ppg and just over 5 rpg; he finished this game against Paris with 23 points, 8 rebounds, and 5 assists. Dalton was my player of the year in the 12th and he justified my pick on Saturday. The second leading scorer on their team, DeAjuan Stepp wasn’t in attendance so WJ could have ran away with this game more. But, senior W Braeden Fomas stepped up to fill the void with 15 points and 11 rebounds, he is a special player. Also 2021 F Nate Breeden has the ability to be one of the top players in the 12th Region by the time he’s a senior. He contributed with 13 points and 6 rebounds. Paris coming off a disappointing loss on Friday night, was looking to rebound and defeat West Jess. They were unable to keep up with the pace of the Colts and only clawed back in the game when Bruner sat in the 4th to foul trouble. Although they lost this game, Paris are contenders in their region and have the ability to make noise come tournament time. 6’6 senior F Jalen Byars was one of the best players in this shootout and was a force on both ends of the court. He finished with 20 points and 7 rebounds, but stats don’t tell every part of his game, he puts his team in position to score even when he doesn’t have the ball. 2020 G Caleb Johnson also stepped up and was great offensively, scoring 15 points. 2019 G Travis Strings helped late in the game scoring, ending up with 13 points, he will have to get more involved in order for Paris to beat tough opponents.
Game 5: Bourbon County (45) v. Tates Creek (56)
I unfortunately wasn’t able to stay for this game but from what I heard it was a dogfight. As stated earlier in the article, the new backcourt duo of the Joyce brothers have really elevated Bourbon Basketball and are looking to claim a district title for the first time since 2004. Tates Creek has also struggled in recent years being behind powerhouses Dunbar, Lafayette, Lex Cath and Lex Christian. Both of these programs are similar, being behind powerhouses in their own districts, they are trying to turn their teams around and attempt to qualify for a region tournament.