Top Five Season Preview: Fourth Region
Over the next 2 months, we’ll preview the top teams and players in each of the 16 regions as we move toward the 2019-2020 regular season. As part of our preview, we’ll break down the regional title contenders and the…
Access all of Prep Hoops
Continue reading this article and more.
Continue ReadingOver the next 2 months, we’ll preview the top teams and players in each of the 16 regions as we move toward the 2019-2020 regular season. As part of our preview, we’ll break down the regional title contenders and the top college prospects in every region. We continue with the fourth region, where the title, as always, runs through Bowling Green where Bowling Green and Warren Central are the heavy favorites
Top Five Regional Title Contenders:
Warren Central – The reigning and defending champions return 10 players off last season’s Final 4 team. Dre Boyd and Kobe Brents are a dynamic back court and Coach Unseld is able to use his depth and length to wear teams down with pressure. With depth and a true alpha dog in Boyd, Central should be the early favorite but it’s a very narrow margin.
Bowling Green – As strong as Warren Central’s Senior class is, Bowling Green’s Junior class is better. With Isaiah Mason, Jacobi Huddleston, Trace Flanary and Conner Cooper, the Junior class is strong and Turner Buttry adds another solid piece on the perimeter. If they can play together, they’re the most talented team in the region by a large margin.
Logan County – They lost a lot from a 25 win team but the Cougars should have enough firepower to win plenty of games in a 4th region that lacks quality depth past the first few teams. Rooster Woodard will be the best player on the court in most games they play. That alone should help them win some close games and get back to the regional tournament.
Greenwood – With a new coach and a transfer from Alabama, the Gators will be a battle tested group by the time district tournament rolls around. Ultimately, Greenwood’s season comes down to showing they can beat Bowling Green or Warren Central in the district and get to the regional tournament. Noah Stansbury and Ben Carroll will hope to do just that.
Glasgow – A very strong core returns for the Scotties and should be helped by the return of Jaden Franklin who missed his Junior season after an ACL tear. Nik Sorrell is probably the best pure scorer in the region and Glasgow could win the 2A state championship after falling short last season.
Top 5 College Prospects:
Dre Boyd, Warren Central – Fearless and tough, Dre is an athletic slasher who can get downhill and finish at the rim. While Boyd is not a great shooter, he is capable of affecting the game in multiple ways as a defender and a passer in addition to his scoring ability.
Isaiah Mason, Bowling Green – Holding a handful of D1 offers already, Isaiah is one of the best Juniors in the state. He has shown flashes of dominance over the last year or so. If he continues to improve this season like he did over the summer, Bowling Green will be hard to beat.
Jacobi Huddleston, Bowling Green – His production to this point hasn’t been impressive but at 6’7, long and athletic, a D1 coach told me recently that Huddleston is a no brainer D1 player in the future. If he can ramp his production up, he may be the X factor in the 4th region title race.
Rooster Woodard, Logan County – Rooster had one of the best dunks I saw all summer long when he was at Western Kentucky team camp and Woodard continues to improve. He was the MVP of the 16u division at the AAU State tournament and should be one of the leading scorers in the entire region.
Nik Sorrell, Glasgow – Nik will give Woodard plenty of competition for leading scorer in the region and should be neck and neck with Boyd to be the Mr Basketball nominee for the 4th region. Sorrell can score the ball at every level and is a true sleeper prospect who can help a team at the D2 or NAIA level.
Predicted Mr. Basketball Finalist:
Dre Boyd, Warren Central
Predicted Regional Champion:
Warren Central