With the basketball season officially tipping off Monday, YourSportsEdge is publishing our first edition of the YSE 2nd Region Basketball rankings, which will be published each week throughout the season.
1. Hopkinsville – The Tigers were likely going to be the regional favorite even before the return of Jalen Johnson. Now that he is back, they may well be the prohibitive favorite in the region, and a contender to cut down the nets at Rupp.
2. University Heights – The team with the best shot at stopping Hopkinsville may be the Blazers. KyKy Tandy can flat play the game, and can be almost unstoppable at times. And, with the talent level, UHA is far from a one man team.
3. Christian County – If the Colonels were in any other district, they would be a lock to get into the 2nd Region tournament. Problem is, the Colonels could well be one of the top teams in the state and not get out of the 8th District.
4. Madisonville – One of the big questions in the 2nd Region is can anyone outside of the 8th District break that district’s stranglehold on the regional title. The last team outside of the 8th District to win the region may have the best shot. The Maroons won the title in 2001, and this year return 9 juniors and seniors.
5. Henderson County – Not to sound disinterested, but Henderson is Henderson, and is never a team to overlook in the 2nd Region tournament. The Colonels bring back four seniors off a team that played Hopkinsville to a six-point game in the regional semifinals last year. And, it is Henderson County after all.
6. Webster County – Beyond the top five teams in the region, you run into several teams that are very comparable to one another. Webster County won 18 games last year, and return several players. The question for the Trojans will be do they have enough to hang around with the top five for a full 32 minutes.
7. Union County – The Braves struggled to win 8 games last season. However, that team was a very young team with no seniors. Union expects to be better this season, and should be on experience alone, as the Braves will have five seniors and six juniors. Will that be enough to knock Webster or Henderson out of a regional berth?
8. Livingston Central – No 5th District team has won the Boys 2nd Region since Trigg County in 1997. This does not figure to be the year that changes, but the Livingston Central Cardinals are hoping to be one of the 5th District teams to make the regional tourney. Livingston won 18 games last year, and look to be the best in the district as the season begins.
9. Caldwell County – The 7th District was an interesting one last year. Caldwell County, Madisonville, and Hopkins Central, each beat the other. Derrin Boyd and Jameer Riley are expected to lead a team that will need to get up and down the court and shoot well to contend in the 7th.
10. Trigg County – The Wildcats finished last season on an 8-game losing streak. Trigg will need several of their young players who saw court time last season to step up their games this season to make a run at the 5th District title and a regional tourney berth.
11. Hopkins Central – The Storm won 21 games last season, but was stunned in the district tournament by Dawson Springs. Hopkins Central lost seven seniors off last year’s roster, which makes overtaking Madisonville and Caldwell County a bit of a challenge this season.
12. Lyon County – The Lyons won the 5th District last year and gave Webster County a battle in the 2nd Region tourney. However, graduation losses, and some other players electing not to return this season, put the Lyons in a tough situation for the 2017-2018 season.
13. Crittenden County – A young Rockets team won only 7 games last year. The Rockets will still be young this season with six freshmen and sophomore on the roster this year. Whether or not those young players develop early in the season could hold the key to a chance at a regional tournament berth.
14. Dawson Springs – The Panthers had some pretty good moments last year. Winning over Caldwell County and knocking Hopkins Central out of the district tournament were two of the big ones. The loss of five seniors may make a repeat run in the 7th District a bit more difficult.
15. Fort Campbell – The Falcons have set a goal of a winning season in 2017-2018. The Falcons have some athletic players returning and a couple of talented newcomers. However, a schedule that features six games against Christian County, Hopkinsville, and UHA may make that goal a bit of a challenge.