King of the Bluegrass ~ Ashland Tomcats

<p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Prep Hoops staff was in attendance for the 40th King of the Bluegrass Tournament at Fairdale High School. We cannot recommend this event enough! Along with the great people at Fairdale, Tournament Director, Lloyd Gardner, does a tremendous job organizing and facilitating this event. Gyms were packed with fans from around the area who came to see Kentucky’s best teams compete under one roof. View their website here with game recaps and tournament pictures: <a href="http://www.kingofthebluegrass.com/">www.kingofthebluegrass.com</a></span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"> </span></p> <p><span style="text-decoration: underline;"><span style="font-weight: 400;">Ashland Blazer Tomcats - 16th Region</span></span></p> <p><em><span style="font-weight: 400;">King of the Bluegrass Recap:</span></em></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Win vs Lyon County 87-81</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Loss vs Male 69-66</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Win vs Fairdale 101-84</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Loss vs GRC 89-53</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">This is the second tournament PH staff has been able to be in person to watch the Tomcats. We had the pleasure of watching both games in the Marshall County Hoopfest earlier in December. Coach Mays has an outstanding team group that plays very well together and plays within their margins. Despite being in the far eastern part of the state, they have an extremely challenging schedule by matching up with some of the best opponents Kentucky can offer. The Tomcats are led by 3 guards, <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="932768" first="Colin" last="Porter"]</strong> (Jr.), <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="926924" first="Ethan" last="Sellars"]</strong> (Sr.), and <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="926907" first="Cole" last="Villers"]</strong> (Sr.)</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="932768" first="Colin" last="Porter"]</strong> - Top 10 Player in c/o 2023</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Porter is a score-first guard that can put up buckets in a hurry. He has a full array of crafty moves that gives him the space to put up a clean shot. Porter is under 6-feet-tall but is very skilled at creating space to shoot. Coach Mays has a plethora of sets and actions to get his guards good looks but, early in the season, Porter looks to have the green light to shoot at his leisure. And when he has the hot hand, he can be lethal. When matched up with a bigger athlete, Porter will use his quick-twitch and speed to get by them. When an even-sized guard is playing defense, Porter has a unique ability to get the defender to ball-watch until he puts a couple of double moves together to give himself a high percentage shot. Porter’s dual against Male was evident why he is such a special player pouring in 24 points and several "wow" plays.</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="926907" first="Cole" last="Villers"]</strong> - Top 25 Player in c/o 2022</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Villers is a steady guard that makes impact plays all over the court. Throughout the event, Villers was setting screens, battling in the post, flying around on the press defense, organizing the offense, and getting offensive rebounds. Where Villers may lack in athleticism, he makes up for by his high basketball IQ, hustling, and perseverance. He is a team player that will be a huge piece for the Tomcats once they enter postseason play. Unfortunately, Villers was unable to complete the event due to injury. It is pretty obvious that the final game against GRC would have been more competitive if Ashland were at full strength. Here's to hoping they match up again in the near future! </span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;"><strong>[player_tooltip player_id="926924" first="Ethan" last="Sellars"]</strong> - Top 50 Player in c/o 2022</span></p> <p><span style="font-weight: 400;">Sellars was the second most productive player for the Tomcats and rightfully earned his selection on the All-Tournament Team. Sellars is a sharpshooter that displays a great understanding of the offense. Throughout the 4 games, he made big shots, sustained momentum, took tough drives to the rim, and played outstanding defense. Sellars can bury shots from long range and make quick, determined drives to the rim over any challengers. He is a tough player to match up with because of his playmaking ability. Sellars is a fun player to watch and a real weapon for Coach Mays.</span></p> <p><br /> <b>Make sure you are following</b><a href="https://twitter.com/prephoopsky"> <b>@PrepHoopsKY</b></a><b> on Twitter for weekly top games &amp; top performers!</b></p>