John Hardin vs. Russellville 12-20-07
By Chris Gregory, Fifth Region Correspondent
This was my second game on the day, and I got to watch a team I already knew something about, the John Hardin Bulldogs. From the opening tap this game was fast and furious. Russellville, from the Fourth Region, must've gotten hold of some game film because they opened up in a 2-1-2 zone, and it threw the Bulldogs off a bit.
Russellville fans told me that the Panthers like to shoot the three. The coach's son, Daniel Pardue, is particularly a good shot from the perimeter. They led at the end of the first quarter 14-12.
When the second quarter started, both teams still had on the afterburners. I watched and wrote about John Hardin about two weeks ago, and they are improving game-by-game. They really move the ball well. Silly turnovers and both teams being unable to find the basket made the quarter a bit boring. Russellville stuck to their game plan: live and die by the three. It just wasn't there on Thursday night. John Hardin took a 23-19 lead in at halftime.
The Bulldogs opened it up in the third quarter. They are so quick, and they create a lot of turnovers by getting into the passing lanes. It gave the Panthers fits. Russellville, still cold from the field, changed to a man-to-man defense. That was what John Hardin was waiting for, and they started running the infamous flex offense. From there, it was just one lay-up after another.
I know a lot of teams everywhere run the flex, and you know it's coming. It's just hard to stop.
Mike Randolph and Chris White led John Hardin to a 37-28 lead at the end of the third.
When the fourth came around, I was tired just watching these guys run. The Bulldogs played some sticky defense on the Panthers, and they still could not find their range. John Hardin was just too athletic. They won the game 59-40 and took third place in the tournament.
OBSERVATIONS
A Friendly Stripe: Russellville couldn't find their range on the perimeter, but they shot well from the free throw line. The Pardue kid was 6 for 6 from the charity stripe.
This Tourney Won't Cave: I had a good time at the Caveland Classic, and I'm glad I chose to start my holiday tournament season in Edmonson County. There was plenty of friendly fans.
Showing posts with label Allen County Scottsville. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Allen County Scottsville. Show all posts
Friday, December 21, 2007
Caveland Classic @ Edmonson County High School
Allen County-Scottsville vs. Breckinridge County
By Chris Gregory, Fifth Region Correspondent
I'm off work for eight days, and I'm excited about some holiday tournaments. The only problem is that there is so many good games I didn't know where to start. On Thursday, I decided to go to the Caveland Classic at Edmonson County High School. The tourney started on Tuesday with a field of eight teams mainly from the Third and Fourth regions. John Hardin was in the field representing the Fifth Region.
As I made my way down I-65, I couldn't wait to get to Brownsville and get some Berties Ice Cream. I was afraid of going too fast through Mammoth Cave for fear of the swarm of deer in the National Park. Of course, my first stop in Brownsville was Berties, where I filled my belly, and then I was off to the game.
I got there just after Ohio County and a team from Canada called London Christian finished playing. Breck County, my alma mater, and Allen County was next.
ACS came into the game with a 6-3 and Breck County was 4-5. When I looked at their rosters I noticed they both were a little young. Both had only three seniors.
Breckinridge County controlled the opening tip, and Jerimah Stinnett stroked a smooth three from the left wing about five seconds into the game. The Patriots raced back down the floor and hit their own basket. The two teams traded baskets, and Stinnett led the way for the Tigers by scoring 11 of Breck County's 16 first quarter points. They led by two at the quarter break.
Stinnett continued with a hot hand in the second quarter, and his Tigers starting expanding the lead.
Allen County had some rowdy fans at the game, and they did not like the way the game was being called. I've been around basketball for awhile now, and I'm an old ref myself. I normally don't say much about the officiating, but these guys missed a few calls. The fans didn't take a likin' to it. At the half Breck County led 37-22, and Stinnett had 16 points.
The Patriots made some adjustments at the half and were able to cool off Stinnett. Well, the whole team cooled off because they went about four minutes without a basket.
Led by junior, Brandon Lovett, ACS shot there way back into the game. They also fed the ball to 6'9" Phillip Hayes. It seems to me that if you've got a 6'9" guy on your team, and he has a sizable height advantage, he shuold get the ball every time down the floor. Breck County was still cold and let Allen County back in the game.
Patrick Critchelow, first year head coach at Breck County, called a time out and unleashed a tongue lashing on his team. I was quick to notice that the players respect their young coach and did not back talk. They are willing to learn the game.
ACS kept pushing back trying to make a game out of it. Lovett hit a three and made it a 12-3 run for the Pats. By the end of the third, they had closed the gap to 40-34. Breck County only scored three points in the third quarter.
Coach Critchelow had calmed down by the start of the fourth quarter. When I go to a game, I like to sit right behind a team's bench and observe a coach's technique. I really like the approach that Critchelow took with his team. He was always positive. He told them to just go out and play hard, and they did. They looked relaxed.
I'm not taking anything away from ACS because they are a good team, and it might have been different if their best player was on the court. He was sidelined by a groin injury. Breck County pulled away and won 58-47.
OBSERVATIONS
Win It with Stinnett: Jerimah Stinnett is a baller, or at least he was on Thursday night. He finished the game with 23 points. He looks like the type of player that lets the game come to him, and he never did rush anything or make any poor decisions.
You Can Go Home Again: I wanted to reiterate how much I like Patrick Critchelow's approach he took inside the huddle. I'm a former player, and I know what works with kids and what doesn't. His approach should work. I've known him for a long time, and you can't beat him as a person. He is in his first year as head coach, and I assume he has the support of the whole county behind him. He came back to Breck after leading them to a State Championship in 1995 and leading Kentucky Wesleyan to a National Championship.
Editor's Note: It's more a question. I was wondering if the best player for Allen County out with a groin injury was Jay "Pickle Juice" Starks. When I saw Allen County tangle with Greenwood a few weeks ago, Starks played and was nursing a groin injury that night. If it was Starks, he'd make a big difference. That's based on what I saw in Scottsville back around Thanksgiving.
By Chris Gregory, Fifth Region Correspondent
I'm off work for eight days, and I'm excited about some holiday tournaments. The only problem is that there is so many good games I didn't know where to start. On Thursday, I decided to go to the Caveland Classic at Edmonson County High School. The tourney started on Tuesday with a field of eight teams mainly from the Third and Fourth regions. John Hardin was in the field representing the Fifth Region.
As I made my way down I-65, I couldn't wait to get to Brownsville and get some Berties Ice Cream. I was afraid of going too fast through Mammoth Cave for fear of the swarm of deer in the National Park. Of course, my first stop in Brownsville was Berties, where I filled my belly, and then I was off to the game.
I got there just after Ohio County and a team from Canada called London Christian finished playing. Breck County, my alma mater, and Allen County was next.
ACS came into the game with a 6-3 and Breck County was 4-5. When I looked at their rosters I noticed they both were a little young. Both had only three seniors.
Breckinridge County controlled the opening tip, and Jerimah Stinnett stroked a smooth three from the left wing about five seconds into the game. The Patriots raced back down the floor and hit their own basket. The two teams traded baskets, and Stinnett led the way for the Tigers by scoring 11 of Breck County's 16 first quarter points. They led by two at the quarter break.
Stinnett continued with a hot hand in the second quarter, and his Tigers starting expanding the lead.
Allen County had some rowdy fans at the game, and they did not like the way the game was being called. I've been around basketball for awhile now, and I'm an old ref myself. I normally don't say much about the officiating, but these guys missed a few calls. The fans didn't take a likin' to it. At the half Breck County led 37-22, and Stinnett had 16 points.
The Patriots made some adjustments at the half and were able to cool off Stinnett. Well, the whole team cooled off because they went about four minutes without a basket.
Led by junior, Brandon Lovett, ACS shot there way back into the game. They also fed the ball to 6'9" Phillip Hayes. It seems to me that if you've got a 6'9" guy on your team, and he has a sizable height advantage, he shuold get the ball every time down the floor. Breck County was still cold and let Allen County back in the game.
Patrick Critchelow, first year head coach at Breck County, called a time out and unleashed a tongue lashing on his team. I was quick to notice that the players respect their young coach and did not back talk. They are willing to learn the game.
ACS kept pushing back trying to make a game out of it. Lovett hit a three and made it a 12-3 run for the Pats. By the end of the third, they had closed the gap to 40-34. Breck County only scored three points in the third quarter.
Coach Critchelow had calmed down by the start of the fourth quarter. When I go to a game, I like to sit right behind a team's bench and observe a coach's technique. I really like the approach that Critchelow took with his team. He was always positive. He told them to just go out and play hard, and they did. They looked relaxed.
I'm not taking anything away from ACS because they are a good team, and it might have been different if their best player was on the court. He was sidelined by a groin injury. Breck County pulled away and won 58-47.
OBSERVATIONS
Win It with Stinnett: Jerimah Stinnett is a baller, or at least he was on Thursday night. He finished the game with 23 points. He looks like the type of player that lets the game come to him, and he never did rush anything or make any poor decisions.
You Can Go Home Again: I wanted to reiterate how much I like Patrick Critchelow's approach he took inside the huddle. I'm a former player, and I know what works with kids and what doesn't. His approach should work. I've known him for a long time, and you can't beat him as a person. He is in his first year as head coach, and I assume he has the support of the whole county behind him. He came back to Breck after leading them to a State Championship in 1995 and leading Kentucky Wesleyan to a National Championship.
Editor's Note: It's more a question. I was wondering if the best player for Allen County out with a groin injury was Jay "Pickle Juice" Starks. When I saw Allen County tangle with Greenwood a few weeks ago, Starks played and was nursing a groin injury that night. If it was Starks, he'd make a big difference. That's based on what I saw in Scottsville back around Thanksgiving.
Wednesday, November 28, 2007
Greenwood @ Allen County Scottsville 11-27-07
When Southern women see an ugly baby, they cannot bring themselves to lie about the child's looks. Nothing could ever make them say that a baby was ugly. Instead, they say, "bless its little heart."
If any magnolia blossoms were at Tuesday night's Greenwood vs. Allen County-Scottsville basketball game, they left the gym saying "bless its little heart." It was an ugly game. U-G-L-Y. If the gaggle of Fourth Region coaches in attendance threw a DVD of the game into an Allen County farm pond, they could skim ugly off of it for a week. No one would ask this game to the prom.
Greenwood played the first half as if it had no game plan beyond players putting their heads down and driving for the hoop. They spread the defense out, and a player took off for the basket and the others followed right behind him. It was reminiscent of film footage from the old American Gladiators show, and I was expecting everyone to start calling the players "Storm" and "Ice" and "Tower."
Allen County-Scottsville's players had one thing in mind in the first half: get the ball in the hands of Jay Starks. He's the Patriot's go-to-guy this season, and one of the few on the squad that has much experience. He's good, too, possibly one of the best players in the Fourth Region this year. He's a big guard with quick hands and a quicker first step to the basket. He will be a thorn in the side of Fourth Region teams all year. Tuesday night, however, the Patriot squad seemed desperate to get the ball into his hands. On more than one occasion I saw one of his teammate's pass the ball to him instead of passing it to a player in a better position or at a better angle on the court.
I sensed that the other Fourth Region coaches in the stands were frustrated at not really seeing any kind of plays or set offense from either team. I just kind of sensed it from them. I think I even saw them swapping notes.
Despite the daredevil offense by the Gators, they went in the locker room at halftime with a 35-26 lead on ACS.
Allen County was a different team after the break. Scott Shelton must have gotten after his players, and they responded. They played better defense and seemed to frustrate the Gators. Greenwood, inexplicably, quit pressing Allen County in the second half, and the Patriots took advantage of the half court defense. Plus, they started distributing the ball better, and Anthony Graves responding with some key baskets, which took some of the pressure off of Starks, who finished the game with 18. I thought he had about 28, but that's because he must've scored most of their first half points. Graves finished with 16 points.
Greenwood looked like they wore down during the second half. I think their point totals in each quarter backs this up: 19, 16, 10, 9. They seemed to be out of gas at the end of the contest.
Allen County found the momentum in the second half, outscoring the tiring Gators 31-19 in the second frame. The game was tight in the fourth quarter, and with about six minutes left in the game Starks went down under the Greenwood goal with a massive muscle cramp in his leg. I heard that they made him down a bunch of pickle juice to keep him from cramping again. He came back in the game and made some big plays. I'm sure the Greenwood players loved getting in his face after drinking pickle juice.
That could be a good nickname for him: Jay "Pickle Juice" Starks.
Allen County won the ugly contest 56-54. Bless their little hearts.
Dee Anderson, the smooth playing guard for the Gators, severely injured his knee this summer and missed the entire football season. He started last night, but sported a huge brace that looked like it went from the top of his thigh to his ankle. It looked like they took a leg off of a Terminator and put it on Anderson. He had no lateral movement and seemed to be in pain through most of the game. He scored five points last night. He's not the same player right now. I'm sure that he will be back, but I'm wondering if he'll reach 100% this season. It's a shame. From all accounts, I hear that he is a good kid, and I know he's a good basketball player.
OBSERVATIONS
HORSHOES ANYONE?
I love Allen County-Scottsville's gym. It is a horseshoe with roll-out seats down low and concrete stands above them. Steel girders cross the ceiling above the court, and the home side has chairback seats. A bank of wooden bleachers are at the open end of horseshoe, and ACS students fill them. It reminded me of when I lived in Shelby County and was a regular at the Eight Region Tournament at Henry County High School, whose gym is also a horseshoe.
STROKE!!
Allen County's band rocks. They led off with "The Stroke" by Billy Squier. I don't think I've ever heard a band play that song, especially not a high school one. They played some other rock classics, and they played them well, too. They do a good job with their fight song, which is Notre Dame's. I love that song. "Shake all the thunder down from the sky" are probably the best lyrics in the entire library of fight songs.
WHITNEY HOUSTON?
Every time Mark Lacey shot free throws in the second half the ACS students chanted "WHITNEY CHEATED! WHITNEY CHEATED! WHITNEY CHEATED!" I always thought it was Bobby Brown that cheated, and I still can't figure out what Mark Lacey has to do with it.
LIFE AFTER THE GRAVES
Allen County has another kid named Graves, but he's no relation to the hot shooting Luc Graves, who graduated last season. The latest version of Graves should give the Patriots life after the departure of Luc variety of Graves.
If any magnolia blossoms were at Tuesday night's Greenwood vs. Allen County-Scottsville basketball game, they left the gym saying "bless its little heart." It was an ugly game. U-G-L-Y. If the gaggle of Fourth Region coaches in attendance threw a DVD of the game into an Allen County farm pond, they could skim ugly off of it for a week. No one would ask this game to the prom.
Greenwood played the first half as if it had no game plan beyond players putting their heads down and driving for the hoop. They spread the defense out, and a player took off for the basket and the others followed right behind him. It was reminiscent of film footage from the old American Gladiators show, and I was expecting everyone to start calling the players "Storm" and "Ice" and "Tower."
Allen County-Scottsville's players had one thing in mind in the first half: get the ball in the hands of Jay Starks. He's the Patriot's go-to-guy this season, and one of the few on the squad that has much experience. He's good, too, possibly one of the best players in the Fourth Region this year. He's a big guard with quick hands and a quicker first step to the basket. He will be a thorn in the side of Fourth Region teams all year. Tuesday night, however, the Patriot squad seemed desperate to get the ball into his hands. On more than one occasion I saw one of his teammate's pass the ball to him instead of passing it to a player in a better position or at a better angle on the court.
I sensed that the other Fourth Region coaches in the stands were frustrated at not really seeing any kind of plays or set offense from either team. I just kind of sensed it from them. I think I even saw them swapping notes.
Despite the daredevil offense by the Gators, they went in the locker room at halftime with a 35-26 lead on ACS.
Allen County was a different team after the break. Scott Shelton must have gotten after his players, and they responded. They played better defense and seemed to frustrate the Gators. Greenwood, inexplicably, quit pressing Allen County in the second half, and the Patriots took advantage of the half court defense. Plus, they started distributing the ball better, and Anthony Graves responding with some key baskets, which took some of the pressure off of Starks, who finished the game with 18. I thought he had about 28, but that's because he must've scored most of their first half points. Graves finished with 16 points.
Greenwood looked like they wore down during the second half. I think their point totals in each quarter backs this up: 19, 16, 10, 9. They seemed to be out of gas at the end of the contest.
Allen County found the momentum in the second half, outscoring the tiring Gators 31-19 in the second frame. The game was tight in the fourth quarter, and with about six minutes left in the game Starks went down under the Greenwood goal with a massive muscle cramp in his leg. I heard that they made him down a bunch of pickle juice to keep him from cramping again. He came back in the game and made some big plays. I'm sure the Greenwood players loved getting in his face after drinking pickle juice.
That could be a good nickname for him: Jay "Pickle Juice" Starks.
Allen County won the ugly contest 56-54. Bless their little hearts.
Dee Anderson, the smooth playing guard for the Gators, severely injured his knee this summer and missed the entire football season. He started last night, but sported a huge brace that looked like it went from the top of his thigh to his ankle. It looked like they took a leg off of a Terminator and put it on Anderson. He had no lateral movement and seemed to be in pain through most of the game. He scored five points last night. He's not the same player right now. I'm sure that he will be back, but I'm wondering if he'll reach 100% this season. It's a shame. From all accounts, I hear that he is a good kid, and I know he's a good basketball player.
OBSERVATIONS
HORSHOES ANYONE?
I love Allen County-Scottsville's gym. It is a horseshoe with roll-out seats down low and concrete stands above them. Steel girders cross the ceiling above the court, and the home side has chairback seats. A bank of wooden bleachers are at the open end of horseshoe, and ACS students fill them. It reminded me of when I lived in Shelby County and was a regular at the Eight Region Tournament at Henry County High School, whose gym is also a horseshoe.
STROKE!!
Allen County's band rocks. They led off with "The Stroke" by Billy Squier. I don't think I've ever heard a band play that song, especially not a high school one. They played some other rock classics, and they played them well, too. They do a good job with their fight song, which is Notre Dame's. I love that song. "Shake all the thunder down from the sky" are probably the best lyrics in the entire library of fight songs.
WHITNEY HOUSTON?
Every time Mark Lacey shot free throws in the second half the ACS students chanted "WHITNEY CHEATED! WHITNEY CHEATED! WHITNEY CHEATED!" I always thought it was Bobby Brown that cheated, and I still can't figure out what Mark Lacey has to do with it.
LIFE AFTER THE GRAVES
Allen County has another kid named Graves, but he's no relation to the hot shooting Luc Graves, who graduated last season. The latest version of Graves should give the Patriots life after the departure of Luc variety of Graves.
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