Regular Season: Day Seven

From Saturday...

--This weekend, the Paintsville Tigers represented the 15th region well albeit losing twice at the Commodore Classic in Lexington. Bryan Station defeated the Tigers 92-85, and Henry Clay beat them by a similar margin on Saturday 88-78. But these games proved that not only could Paintsville play with these teams from Lexington, they can also score. The ability to put the ball in the bucket is much more valuable in a region like the 15th than the 7th or 11th, where offensive ineffectiveness directly results in a losing record. But Paintsville's rival, Johnson Central, also picked up a nice win this weekend, as the Golden Eagles notched the victory over the 5th region's North Hardin 50-41. All in all, a good weekend for the 15th region.

--But not so much for the 5th. As we saw, North Hardin fell to Johnson Central. And my state champion "prediction," Elizabethtown, took it on the chin hard at Tates Creek 74-51. A 23 point loss to a mid-pack team from the 11th region isn't a good sign for the Panthers. To the 5th's credit, John Hardin won a scrappy 60-58 affair with Greenwood, a team that had started the season on fire.

--After defeating Dunbar to begin the season, Covington Catholic made the return trip to Lexington, but they played Lafayette. And the result was not the same for the Colonels, as the Generals picked up a big win for the 11th region 85-77. Combined with Tates Creek's rout of Elizabethtown, and Scott County's whipping of Ballard, the 11th region has established itself as the predominant region in the state.

--Henderson County, one of the favorites in the 2nd region, looked anything but that against the 3rd's Meade County. The Colonels fell hard 49-31.

--Much has been made of Rose Hill's possible resurgance in the 16th region, but many say that the Royals are still a year away from contending for a title. Perhaps not, as Rose Hill's young guns were too much for a good Southwestern team in a 81-62 pounding.

My first top 25 will debut today. Consider these to be more of a "power rankings" set, as I will reward teams that made big statements in week one.