Week 6 Hot Stove: All “A” snippets, Lady Marshals surging and quick notes
Lyons’ loss can lead to more
After a school-record 14-0 start, Lyon County finally experienced the taste of defeat on Feb. 8 — a 71-47 road loss at Third Region, Ninth District power Owensboro Catholic.
Playing without star big-man Jackson Shoulders (COVID-19 protocol), freshman point guard sensation Travis Perry was held to a rare tough shooting night (3-for-15, 13 points) and wasn’t alone, as the Lyons were 6-for-26 on two-point attempts, 8-for-21 on 3-point attempts and 11-of-15 from the stripe. The Aces, meanwhile, had five players in double figures — led by Gray Weaver’s 18 points and 15 each from Sam McFarland and Brian Griffith.
If there’s such a time for a loss, this was it. The Lyons safely made it to Richmond on Monday night despite treacherous wintry weather conditions — hopes of a winning a 2021 All “A” state title at the beautiful, bright McBrayer Arena in tow.
Up first for LC? Seventh Region All “A” champion Kentucky Country Day (5-7), which is led by its own young star in sophomore Will Crockett. He’s averaging 23.0 ppg on 53.3% from the floor, 38.4% from the arc (28-for-73) and 77% from the stripe. He’s also averaging nearly five rebounds per game.
The Bearcats are shooting 44.4% from the floor, 33.7% from the arc and 59.2% from the stripe, while grabbing 25.1 rebounds per game.
Senior guard Nicholas Roemer has also been pretty strong for KCD this season, averaging 14.8 ppg in eight contests.
If the Lyons win on Wednesday (4:30 p.m. EST), they’ll play the winner of Evangel Christian and Clinton County on Friday at 4 p.m. EST.
Can Murray meet them?
In the bottom bracket of the 2021 All “A” State Tournament, the Murray Tigers (8-5, 7-2 First Region, .552 RPI)…who open up play on Wednesday at 9 p.m. EST against 11th Region All “A” regional champion Lexington Christian Academy (7-5).
Revenge game, after falling to LCA in the 2020 KHSAA Class 2A state football semifinals? Nah. Not really. But it’s probably in the back of the minds of guys like Trey Boggess, Sebastian Lawrence and Dijon Miles and Collin Wilson — all of whom took significant snaps for the Tiger gridders this past season.
Murray is coming off of a tough week in which it fell on the road at Greenwood (72-63) and McCracken County (51-37) before emphatically bouncing back for a 75-34 win against Carlisle County on Feb. 13.
MHS coach Dior Curtis described LCA as “Calloway County-esque” in terms of shooting and pace, but the Eagles have two strong scorers in junior guard Tanner Walton (21.9 ppg, 60.4% shooting) and sophomore Tyler Hall (10.8 ppg, 44.1% FG, 13 3-pointers made).
LCA shoots 47.2% from the field, 37.3% from the arc and a robust 70.7% from the stripe, with Walton leading the way on the boards (6.4).
Whitaker clearly leads the way in scoring for the Tigers at 21.5 ppg, but Boggess (11.2 ppg), Taylor (8.3 ppg) and senior guard Charqwan “Qwannie” McCallister (10.8 ppg) have all been rounding into scoring shape.
Win, and the Tigers get the victor of Pikeville/Knott County Central on Friday at 6:30 p.m. EST.
Lady Tigers get Ball State-bound Kiefer
Now at 7-4 after a narrow 56-52 road loss at McCracken County and a decisive 64-44 home win against Carlisle County, the Murray Lady Tigers tote a bit of confidence with them as they open the 2021 All “A” State Tournament with Bishop Brossart on Wednesday at 9:45 a.m. EST.
The Lady ‘Stangs have a strong senior forward in Marie Kiefer, who easily leads the team in scoring at 22.4 ppg on 53.3% shooting from the floor, 34% from the arc and 65.5% from the stripe.
Averaging 11.4 rebounds per game, Kiefer has scored 43.6% of the team’s points this season, with Jordan Rowe and Rosie Jump the ‘Stangs next-best scorers at 5.9 ppg each.
Kiefer, however is no slouch, as she’s committed to Division I Ball State as part of the Class of 2021.
From a basketball standpoint, Kiefer is going to be the toughest test these Lady Tigers have faced this season — in terms of a singular player with a specific skill-set.
A win here would be colossal for Murray, and would set up a quarterfinal matchup with the winner of Metcalfe County/Danville on Thursday at 6:45 p.m. EST. Can the Lady Tigers continue to get strong shooting and balanced scoring from seniors Makenzie Turley (14.5 ppg, 46.4% shooting) and Angela Gierhart (16.0 ppg, 48.8% shooting), alongside the steady growth of sophomore forward Alyssa Daughrity (10.7 ppg, 8.0 rpg)?
Can Crittenden County crash the Classic?
Second Region All “A” champion Crittenden County (9-3) hasn’t played a game since Feb. 4 — a 69-56 loss at Union County.
That all changes on Thursday at 9:45 a.m. EST, when the Lady Rockets take on Ninth Region All “A” champion Newport Central Catholic (6-6) for a chance to stick around at McBrayer Arena.
Longtime Crittenden County skipper Shannon Hodge has her squad carving up the inside of the arc, with sophomore guard Taylor Guess (16.7 ppg) senior forward Nahla Woodward (11.2 ppg), senior center Jaelyn Duncan (8.7 ppg) and senior guard Chandler Moss (8.1 ppg) really pacing the offense.
The Lady Rockets have attempted just 70 3-pointers in 12 games (5.8 3-point attempts per game), but they may need a few clutch makes from deep against an NCC team that has prolific scorers in junior guard Rylee Turner (20.8 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 15 3-pointers, 42.3% shooting) and senior guard Annie Heck (10.0 ppg).
A victory means an 11 a.m. EST matchup on Friday with Shelby Valley/Berea.
Lady Marshals creeping in RPI
After convincing victories against Mayfield (56-16, Feb. 8) and Owensboro Catholic (56-42, Feb. 13), the Marshall County Lady Marshals have moved up to a .75015 RPI — nearly tops in Kentucky heading into this week. (Anderson County, a perfect 15-0, stands at .75458)
Against the Lady Cardinals, junior Jada Driver popped off from the arc (4-for-5), senior Sophie Galloway scored 11 points on 50% shooting, and the Lady Marshals corralled 38 rebounds as a team – paced by eight from Galloway and 11 from junior forward Halle Langhi.
Against the Lady Aces, Langhi shot 6-for-10 from the floor for 16 points with 10 rebounds, while senior slicer Layne Pea shot 5-for-10 for 12 points.
The amount of balance this team possesses continues to show, and a robust RPI is simply the reward of a tough schedule, 13 straight wins and a stout margin of victory.
A highly-anticipated matchup at Graves County (12-1, .69708 RPI) was set for tonight, until weather wrecked those plans.
Murderous Mustangs marching forward
McCracken County (16-6) has run its winning streak to 10 games now, after topping Murray and Marshall County (66-61, Feb. 14) this past week in First Region action.
Long-time coach Burlin Brower has firmly established a rotation with seven players who have played all 16 games for the Mustangs in Max Blackwell, Brant Brower, Noah Dumas, Ian Hart, Ian McCune, Jack McCune and Cason Tilford. Dumas (16.1 ppg), Hart (11.5 ppg), McCune (10.6 ppg) and Brower (9.6 ppg) are bringing the signature balance that Brower teams are expected to possess, and the Mustangs currently shoot an absolutely absurd 77.7% from the stripe, with Hart and Dumas both above 84%.
Side note: does everyone in Bardwell just grow up learning how to shoot free throws?
Key notes:
— After a tight 57-53 loss to McCracken County on Jan. 26, the Graves County Eagles (10-4, 9-3 1R, 2-0 3D) have ripped off six-straight wins, including a pair of strong ones last week against Carlisle County (78-60, Feb. 9) and Mayfield (70-59, Feb. 13). Senior transfer guard Drew Thompson averaged 29.5 ppg last week, while junior guard Mason Grant averaged 18.5 ppg.
— St. Mary boys basketball has had a tough stretch coming into this week, losing four-straight contests (Graves County, Paducah Tilghman, Mayfield, McCracken County) before having to go into a two-week quarantine (and thus missing six games). On Feb. 13, Hickman County made it five-straight losses with a narrow clipping 62-60, in what’s a strong signature win for first-year Falcons coach Cory Holt. Kelen Johnson (20 points), Garrett Ward (14 points), Eli Prince (13 points) and Jackson Midyett (11 points) provided the balance, which was desperately needed to offset senior star Parker MacCauley’s 23 points. For what it’s worth, MacCauley is still averaging 19.2 ppg on 47.1% shooting, while Midyett is averaging 15.9 ppg on 45.3% shooting.
for those who inquired. 
