The Biggest Takeaways from the 100th Sweet Sixteen
Last week’s 100th Whitaker Bank/KHSAA Boys Sweet Sixteen State Basketball Tournament is one that won’t soon be forgotten.
From Scott High School’s Jake Ohmer putting on a show to Bowling Green winning their first-ever state championship, fans, coaches, players – and even the media – got to experience one of the best showings of the best high school hoops state tournaments in the country.
With the 100th showing of the Sweet 16 behind us, we now look back on some of the best memories from this past week at Rupp Arena:
— Bowling Green is the 2017 state champions
Bowling Green was one of the favorites entering the tournament and showed why that was all throughout the week. The Purples played exceptional basketball over the course of the four games they played in and were a force to be reckoned with. BG beat Graves County in the first round, Scott County in the quarterfinals, Scott High in the semifinals and then Cooper in the title game to capture its first state crown. The Purples (36-2) finished the season on a 29-game winning streak.
— Jake Ohmer leaves a mark on Rupp
Many people knew that Scott High’s Jake Ohmer was a lethal scorer and a fierce competitor, but many didn’t know how capable he was of doing it on the state’s biggest stage. In front of thousands of people at the University of Kentucky’s Rupp Arena, Ohmer poured in 106 points in three games and earned himself a full Division I scholarship to play at Western Kentucky University. He verbally committed Monday and is taking his talents to Bowling Green to extend his stellar hoops career.
— Cooper High School’s Cinderella run
Entering the 100th edition of the Sweet Sixteen, Cooper High wasn’t a favorite to win it. They weren’t even talked about making it past the first round. The Jaguars put all the talk aside and made the most of their time at Rupp Arena, winning three games to advance to the state championship versus eventual champion Bowling Green. Cooper beat Elliot County in the opening round, Collins in the quarterfinals and Fern Creek in the semifinals before falling short to the mighty Purples.
We’re not sure if there will ever be a tournament quite like 2017, but if not, we have plenty of memories to look back on.