North Hardin Vs Adair County Standouts

This week I'm only attending one standalone high school game and in this article we'll break down the standouts from North Hardin's senior night victory over Adair County in what was a thrilling game from start to finish with North Hardin coming away with the tight victory thanks to a big run in the final four minutes of the game.    One of the top players in Kentucky, Berry has been dominant since being cleared to play by the KHSAA. Looking dominant on both ends of the court, Berry had six defensive stocks (steals + blocks) as he made some highlight-reel plays on that end of the court with his tremendous athletic tools. Offensively, Berry shot the ball as well as I've ever seen him from beyond the 3-point arc, going 4/8 from long distance on Monday night. When Berry is engaged on both ends of the court, there's few players or teams who can slow him down in the KHSAA. Region 5 is deep with a handful of teams who can make it to Rupp but if Berry is giving this level of effort on both ends of the court, I'll be leaning North Hardin to make it to the biggest stage in Kentucky High School Basketball.     I was impressed with Cleaver as an athlete, defender and in transition. In the first quarter Cleaver had multiple layups off long strides to the rim in transition or attacking closeouts. Cleaver also scored off a cut and quickly advanced the basketball in transition off steals in the zone defense North Hardin ran. If Cleaver can become a consistent shooter from 3-point range it will really improve his ceiling, he did knock down a key 3-pointer in the second half when North Hardin needed momentum. Impressive wing who will be added to our 2027 rankings during the next update.     George made the move to Adair County and that has given their team a boost as a contender in region 5 and they made a deep run in the AA state tournament back in January. George is a talented combo guard athlete who knocked down some tough perimeter shots early in this game. An impressive vertical athlete, George had some acrobatic dunks and layups in transition on Monday night. Already announcing a plan to take a post grad year after graduating from high school, if George can tighten his handle and play less upright he will be much tougher to stop on drives in the half-court. Very talented guard prospect who should have a nice selection of post grad and grassroots opportunities coming up.     After a quiet first half, Gilbert exploded in the second half to push Adair County to tie the game and take the lead during multiple instances in the second half. One of the top shooters in Kentucky, Gilbert doesn't need much time or space to fire away off the catch. My favorite bucket of Gilbert's on Monday night was when he had a pump fake as a defender flew by him on a closeout and he buried a sidestep 3-pointer. I've seen Gilbert a handful of times in his career and he consistently makes shots and finds buckets off opportunistic plays. Getting some JUCO interest, if Gilbert can continue to add strength and improve his explosiveness, he could impact the game in more ways than just as a shooter.     Early in the game, Blakey was making a big impact against the zone defense by making smart cuts and playing along the baseline behind where the defense was positioned to score in the paint. Making some growth as a ball handler as well, Blakey was starting to handle the basketball a little more than I've previously seen from him. Blakey is one of the more productive forwards in region five and his team will need him to play at a high level if Adair County wants to return to Rupp this March.

This week I'm only attending one standalone high school game and in this article we'll break down the standouts from North Hardin's senior night victory over Adair County in what was a thrilling game from start to finish with North Hardin coming away with the tight victory thanks to a big run in the final four minutes of the game.