2017-18 Season Preview: 7th Region
October 15th is a holiday in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. High school basketball season is officially underway in the Bluegrass state. The excitement that comes with a new season will soon be replaced by the grind of the season but every school in the state starts the season with the same goal. Everyone wants to get to Rupp Arena in March. In our season preview series, we break down the favorites to make it to the KHSAA state tournament out of each region. Our previews continue with the seventh region, where Trinity is the presumptive favorite to win the state title.
Favorite: Trinity (29-4 last season, 7 seniors graduated)
Best Case Scenario: Loaded with talent, Trinity suffers only a handful of losses on the season and is crowned the state champions. David Johnson establishes himself as the top player in Kentucky, regardless of class. Justin Powell puts himself head and shoulders above the rest of the 2020 class. Jayden Scrubb averages a double double his way to state tournament MVP and a high major D1 scholarship.
Worst Case Scenario: Despite having 3 kids with D1 offers and serious depth in the junior class with guys like Walter Johnson and Stan Turnier, Trinity falls in the regional tournament again. The Shamrocks get nowhere near their goal of winning state.
Contender: Ballard (29-7 last season, 4 seniors graduated)
Best Case Scenario: Ballard graduates talent every year but their level of play never seems to drop off. Ballard’s 7 seniors combine their talents to knock off Trinity again and advance to the state tournament. They make a run to the title game.
Worst Case Scenario: The Bruins have depth but no star power. When crunch time rolls around there is no go-to scorer. Coach Chris Renner’s squad dominates the 28th district again but falls in the regional tournament.
Contender: Waggener (19-12 last season, 3 seniors graduated)
Best Case Scenario: The Wildcat offense sees addition by subtraction. While it’s never easy to graduate 2 D1 players, the ball moves better this season and the scoring is more balanced. Juniors JJ Kalakon and Kevion Hudson and Senior Ben Simic form a talented trio that competes with the best teams in the state every night out. They make a deep run in the regional tournament before falling in the title game.
Worst Case Scenario: The scoring and playmaking lost to graduation is too much to overcome this season. Coach Bryan O’Neill uses his depth and talent to win 20 games but they lose the district title to Trinity again before falling in the opening round of the regional tournament.
Contender: Male (15-14 last season, 5 seniors graduated)
Best Case Scenario: The young Bulldogs are led by Junior Hunter McCutcheon and Sophomores Tyren Moore, Noah Courtney and Howard Fleming. Male has a 20+ win season and another 26th district crown before losing in the regional tournament semifinals.
Worst Case Scenario: The sophomore class isn’t ready to contribute at the level necessary for Coach Feldhaus’ team to compete in the 7th region. The team stumbles to another .500 record and lose the district title game to St. X and don’t get past the first round of the regional.
Contender: St. Xavier (19-12 last season, 7 seniors graduated)
Best Case Scenario: Senior Pierce Kiesler is the best player in the district and sophomore James Taylor Jr. makes a big leap in his second year as the starting PG for the Tigers. They win the district championship before losing the in the regional semifinals.
Worst Case Scenario: Kiesler doesn’t get enough help from the role players on the roster. As a result, they can’t replicate their success from a season ago. They again fall in the district championship to Male and are eliminated from the regional tournament by arch rival Trinity.