Titans/Rockets Invitational: 10 Team Takeaways
The first ever Titans/Rockets Invitational took place this weekend in Shelbyville. College coaches were allowed to be out and watch a lot of kids play over the course of the 3 days. There were 64 teams there so I wasn’t…
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Continue ReadingThe first ever Titans/Rockets Invitational took place this weekend in Shelbyville. College coaches were allowed to be out and watch a lot of kids play over the course of the 3 days. There were 64 teams there so I wasn’t able to see anywhere near all the teams at the event so this is not meant to be a list of the only teams who played well. Just the teams who stood out when I was in the gym.
Collins is a player away from being a threat at Rupp. With Marcellus Vail and Dayvion McKnight, the Titans were competitive with Louisville powerhouse teams Fern Creek and Male. But couldn’t win either game. If they had a third scorer, Coach Gaither’s team would be right in the mix to win it all in March. Without a reliable third star, they may not even make it to Rupp.
Fern Creek’s pressure really causes trouble. Most teams are pressing and trapping in the full court but the Tigers made their opponents turn the ball over more in the half court. They have been running and jumping and turning teams over all summer. With their length and athleticism, they can really cause havoc on their opponents all year.
Pool B was unnecessarily loaded. The second pool had three teams who can win their region next season. Fern Creek, McCracken County and South Laurel are all threats (if not the favorites) to get to state in March. The schedule was pretty balanced over all but it seemed like Pool B’s members could have been spread out a little better and have the best teams in the main gym on Saturday and Sunday.
Ashland was the most surprising team. I had very little hopes for the Tomcats coming into Friday but they beat Ballard fairly easily and were generally impressive over the course of the weekend. And they were missing 3 key players. Don’t be surprised if they get back to Lexington in March.
The 4th region still runs through Bowling Green. Warren Central, Greenwood and Bowling Green are the three favorites to win the 4th region in my opinion. All three teams had good weekends and have been impressive in multiple viewings this summer. It’s hard to see another team in the region capable of knocking off 2 of the 3 to cut the nets down at Diddle in March.
Male is probably the favorite to win state at this point. But I think they have too many players in their rotation. It’s hard to envision a team playing 11-12 guys all season and keeping everyone happy. Not to mention they had a certain big kid from Ohio at their games on Saturday mentioning how he wanted to transfer to Male this year. If they can get him, they’re the heavy favorites to win the 7th and likely the state tournament.
Eastern will surprise people. Male gets a lot of the pub but Eastern is a legitimate threat to win the 7th this season. They have size and depth. They’re young but they have a coach that has a state title ring already and if he will let those athletes run, they can be a serious contender in Louisville.
Henry Clay is the favorite in the 11th Region. After watching them about 10 times this summer, I’m confident in saying the reign of Scott County is over and Henry Clay should be king this season in the 11th. The only thing they lack is a good post player. If they could get a rim protector, they could be one of the hardest teams to knock off in the state.
Lexington Catholic isn’t far behind. When they’re making threes, they’re a very tough out. With Ben Johnson, Jack Gohmann and Luke Wedding making multiple threes against Calvary Christian (Florida team), they almost knocked off the most talented team in the event. Calvary has 2 of the best (and biggest) Sophomores in the country but the Knights didn’t back down at all and gave them all they wanted for 40 minutes.
South Oldham is very dangerous. The Dragons battled Male Saturday and built a 10 point lead before ultimately falling short. They ended up 5-1 with 4 blowout wins. They play fast, score a lot of points and put up a whole lot of 3s. South Oldham is like the Houston Rockets of the 8th region. Pace and space and lots of 3s. Fun to watch and going to be dangerous when the postseason rolls around.