We head into 2020, and so far in 2nd Region boys basketball, there is one thing we expected, and one thing maybe we did not. We all knew that Madisonville would be good, potentially very, very good. The bit of a surprise in the region in the first part of the season has been the play of the Webster County Trojans. With that said, those two continue to be 1-2 in this week’s YSE Boys 2nd Region Super 7, with very little change below them. The question continues to be can someone else make a move towards the top over then next few weeks.
1 – Madisonville (11-2) – The Maroons are a whisker away from being 13-0 and possibly being ranked #1 in the state. Overtime losses to Collins in the King of the Bluegrass and Lexington Catholic in the Traditional Bank Holiday Classic are the only blemishes on the record. Barring injury, they will be heavy favorites in all but a couple of their remaining regular season games.
2 – Webster County (11-1) – The Trojans have yet to lose a game to a Kentucky opponent. The only loss came in a holiday tournament in Florida. There are some interesting games coming up for the Trojans in the early part of 2020. A shame that one of them is not against Madisonville.
3 – Christian County (4-7) – The southern Colonels could well be the best 4-7 team in the state. Their schedule has been beyond difficult, and while it may not reflect on their record at the moment, this is a team that will be battle tested come the postseason, and no fun to have to face in an elimination situation.
4 – Lyon County (8-4) – The Lyons are a bit hard to get a read on at this point. They are winning games they are supposed to win. But, to place themselves among the region elite, they could use a “signature” win. There are some chances to get one of those coming up, with games against Marshall County and Madisonville coming up in January.
5 – Henderson County (7-5) – The northern Colonels may be starting to get things on track. They have won four of their last five games, with the only loss coming to a pretty good Ohio County team on the Eagles’ home floor. Keep January 18 marked on your calendar, as Henderson will take on Madisonville.
6 – Hopkinsville (6-6) – The Tigers won two of three in Russellville, and could have very easily won the third against Great Crossing. Hoptown is now starting to get contributions from several players, which could be key to the improvement of this team over the rest of the season. Watch out for this bunch going forward.
7 – University Heights (5-7) – If there is a Jekyll-Hyde team in the 2nd Region right now, it would have to be the Blazers. One game, it looks like they are back on track and ready to get rolling. The next, maybe not so much. If they play four quarters, they can be as good as anyone. But lulls over the course of a game have been a problem to date.
