2017-2018 Season Preview: 15th 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 here the 15th Region.
THE CONTENDERS:
SCHOOL NAME (overall record, region record from last season)
Pikeville (23-9. 19-2)
Last season’s regional champions return Wyatt Battaile, who averaged 20.2 points and 7 rebounds per game. He’ll be coming off some off-season injuries, but will be relied upon to lead Pikeville back to the state tournament again this year. Connor Roberts also returns. Roberts averaged 10 points per game last season.
Floyd Central (First Season)
South Floyd and Allen Central consolidated and Floyd Central will welcome in a host of hoopers from both programs. Senior J.R. Tackett averaged just under 20 points per game as a junior at South Floyd. Brady Conn (15.5 points) and Jacob Collins (15.2) are also coming over from South Floyd. Former Allen Central players Ethan Smith and Cameron Wilson also bring over double-digit scoring to Floyd Central.
Johnson Central (27-7, 17-3)
Johnson Central graduated over 50 points per game last season in Mason Blair and Cole Crace. Jacob Rice will be looked upon to pick up the load left by those two. Rice averaged just over 11 points per game last season.
Sheldon Clark (19-12, 11-4)
Trey James put his name on a national level this summer, quickly becoming a mid-to-high major prospect even if he is only going into his freshman year. At 6’10, James has already visited West Virginia, Marshall, and Western Kentucky. It will be interesting to see how he helps a team that almost won 20 games last season. However, the loss of some experience from last year’s team may hinder some success this season.