Top Five Season Preview: Second Region

<p>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 top college prospects in every region. We continue with the second region, where Madisonville is the favorite to return to Rupp Arena after an Elite 8 run in March.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Top Five Regional Title Contenders:</strong></span></p> <p>Madisonville-North Hopkins - The reigning champions, the Maroons return 4 of their top 6 scorers from a season ago. Kenny White has close to double figure scholarship offers and Ksuan Casey is a matchup problem for everyone in the region. If their point guards can be solid and anyone can make perimeter jump shots, Madisonville will be hard to beat.</p> <p>Christian County - After a disappointing 2018-19 season, the Colonels will look to bounce back. Coach Kerry Stovall's group had 6 freshmen and 2 eighth graders on the varsity roster last season. If now Sophomores Olajuwon White and Qua Chambers can make a jump in their second year of varsity, they can surprise some folks.</p> <p>University Heights Academy - KyKy Tandy is gone but the cupboard is not bare for UHA. KJ Crump is one of the best pure point guards in the state and fellow Juniors Armani McGee and DJ Quarles are ready for bigger roles. UHA, Christian County and Hopkinsville are all relative unknowns going into the season.</p> <p>Union County - Kale Gaither and Eli Wilkes are a very good backcourt but if Coach Shane Smith can't find an interior presence, they'll struggle to beat any of the top tier teams in the region. </p> <p>Webster County - The Trojans used to play slow and methodical, mainly in the half court. This summer they were throttling teams at WKU team camp when I saw them. Tyler Camplin and Hunter McNaughton return. Freshman Bradin Nelson can be a starter by midseason. Coach Newton always has his teams ready to play and they could be a dark horse to win the second and get to Rupp.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Top 5 College Prospects:</strong></span></p> <p>Kenny White, Madisonville-North Hopkins - Kenny has a bunch of scholarship offers and the length and skill set to play at a high level in college. After making a splash at Rupp in March, White added more offers this summer and will sign with a D1 school before graduation.</p> <p>Ksuan Casey, Madisonville-North Hopkins - The X-factor in the regional title race, Ksuan has 2 D1 offers and the potential for many more. His post game is polished, he's a tough cover on the low block and he is among the best rebounders in Kentucky. </p> <p>Alijah Watts, Hopkinsville - When he's motivated, Watts is a D1 caliber guard who can score or create for others. After missing most of his Sophomore season, Alijah should be hungry to make an impact for the Tigers as they try to get back to Rupp Arena.</p> <p>Kale Gaither, Union County - Gaither is a scoring point guard that can get hot in a hurry and has deep range on his jump shot. Kale briefly transferred from Union to Madisonville but came back. By March, we should see if he made the right decision.</p> <p>Travis Perry, Lyon County - It's hard to put an 8th grader on this list but Travis is quietly on track to be the highest scorer in Kentucky basketball history. After he averaged over 20 points per game as a 7th grader, Perry could up his average even more this year and could be close to 1500 career points before he even starts high school.</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Predicted Mr. Basketball Finalist:</strong></span></p> <p>Kenny White, Madisonville-North Hopkins</p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><strong>Predicted Regional Champion:</strong></span></p> <p>Madisonville-North Hopkins</p>