Event Preview: Central Bank Jim Rose Classic

<p>One of the better tournaments on the Post-Christmas slate is starting Thursday at Lexington Christian Academy. The Jim Rose Classic is sponsored by Central Bank and has had a strong field for several seasons now with this year being no different. Continue on for a game by game preview of the opening round and then players to watch all week.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Opening Round Match-ups</strong></span></p> <ul> <li>West Jessamine is a contender in the 12th region and they will look to knock off 9th region member Covington Holy Cross. Holy Cross has some good size with Senior <strong>Pete Knochelmann </strong>while West Jessamine Senior <strong>Dalton Bruner </strong>leads the Colts into the battle with a team high 20.7 points per game. </li> <li>At 4:45, Paducah Tilghman rides a winning streak into their battle with Central Hardin. <strong>Jacob Hobbs</strong> is headed to Lipscomb for his college basketball career while Tilghman will look to <strong>Rodriguez Thomas</strong> to lead them to a win over the Bruins. </li> <li>The 6:15 contest features host Lexington Christian trying to defend home court against Conner. LCA is led by do everything Senior <strong>Kyle Rode</strong> while Conner Junior <strong>Jalen Scott </strong>does most of the scoring for the Cougars. </li> <li>The final game of opening night should be a good one as Campbell County and <strong>Reid Jolly</strong> match-up with Oldham County and <strong>Christian Harper</strong> in a game between two of last year's Sweet Sixteen participants. </li> </ul> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>8 Players to Watch:</strong></span></p> <ol> <li>West Jessamine's <strong>DeAjuan Stepp - </strong>Just a Sophomore, Stepp is averaging 13 points and 7 rebounds for the Colts and could make a claim for best underclassman prospect in the 12 region.</li> <li>Holy Cross' <strong>Nate Niehaus - </strong>Nate isn't shy about putting up 3 pointers. Already having shot 56 threes 9 games, Niehaus is the leading scorer for Holy Cross with just over 12 points per game.</li> <li>Paducah Tilghman's <strong>Avery Strayhorn - </strong>Second on the team in scoring with 12.4 points per game, Strayhorn is shooting 61% from the field while doing almost all of his damage inside the 3 point line.</li> <li>Central Hardin's <strong>Gavin George - </strong>The Junior is off to a strong start to his season with an average of 12.3 points and tacking on 4.6 rebounds per game. George has good size at the point guard spot and should be tough for Tilghman to handle on Thursday.</li> <li>Conner's <strong>Brenden Ginn - </strong>The second leading scorer and rebounder for Conner, Ginn will need a big week for Conner to make some noise at LCA. Averaging 12 points and 6 rebounds for the Cougars, he'll need to help Jalen Scott and company pull the upset over LCA on Thursday.</li> <li>LCA's <strong>Will Hacker - </strong>The second option for the Eagles will need to raise his game for the Eagles to win their championship this week. Hacker is struggling with only shooting 32% from 3 so far this year but he could break out this weekend.</li> <li>Campbell County's <strong>Drew Wilson</strong> - The Camels rely on Reid Jolly for a lot but Wilson is actually the leading scorer for them. Averaging 21 points per game on 57% from the field, Wilson is one of the top free throw shooters in the state.</li> <li>Oldham County's <strong>Tyler Slone - </strong>Slone is a tough wing who has endured a rough start to the year shooting-wise. For Oldham to knock off Campbell and start their weekend off right, Slone will need to raise his game and be the scorer he has shown himself to be in the past.</li> </ol>