District basketball preview: Douglass tops boys and girls contenders next week
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Douglass girls are favorites; boys face tough challengers despite ranking.
- Unranked Lexington Catholic seeks fifth straight district title after big wins.
- Madison Central. boys and Paul Laurence Dunbar girls among other contenders.
Judging by the latest boys and girls Kentucky Media Elite 16 rankings, the basketball postseasons in Lexington and Central Kentucky have a few prohibitive favorites when district tournament play begins Monday.
On the boys’ side in Lexington, No. 7 Frederick Douglass (17-6) has been ranked all season, but it will face a significant challenge in next week’s 42nd District bracket.
Sayre (9-19) took the Broncos to overtime earlier this month. Unranked Henry Clay (17-11) beat them at the buzzer. And even though Bryan Station (21-7) suffered a season sweep against Douglass, the Defenders have a number of players back from the team that avenged itself after going 0-3 against the Broncos during the last regular season by winning the 2025 district crown against them in spectacular fashion.
Led by Lexington’s recently crowned all-time leading scorer Amari Owens, the Defenders are the tournament’s host and have been ranked a number of times this season. They’ll be tough if they get past Henry Clay in the other semifinal. The Blue Devils knocked Station out of the Kentucky Media Elite 16 rankings with a 70-67 home win last week.
But Douglass coach Murray Garvin isn’t looking that far ahead.
“We’re going to have a tough first-round game against the winner of Sayre and Scott County,” said Garvin, whose team is led by senior Bellarmine commit DeMarcus Surratt’s 19.8 points per game. “Sayre just took us to overtime, and Scott County, I feel like they’re so close. Coach (Sean) Woods has done a great job installing a winning mindset.”
On the girls side, it’s Douglass, as well. Ranked No. 6 in the girls poll, the Broncos (19-6) are the defending 42nd District and 11th Region champions and have nearly the same team back from last season’s Girls’ Sweet 16 semifinalist squad.
Douglass swept all of their 42nd District rivals in the regular season by an average score of 64-32 and has routed the other three region foes on their schedule as well — Paul Laurence Dunbar, 71-46, Madison Southern, 58-30, and Tates Creek, 63-20.
But since toppling then No. 1 Sacred Heart 83-63 on Feb. 6, Douglass has suffered three straight losses to ranked opponents and faces another tough test Friday at Kentucky State in Frankfort — a second game this season against now-No. 1 George Rogers Clark.
Douglass coach Daryl Moberly said he believes his team will be ready for the postseason despite its recent setbacks.
“I’m glad it happened early and we hit the skids now instead of the postseason,” Moberly said. “We’ve battled some injuries a little bit, too. That’s taken a toll on us. We’ll definitely be back on track. … I feel like at times, we’ve kind of settled not knowing everybody we play is going to throw their best shot at you every night. We’ve got to be more precise with our decision-making out there and be a little more disciplined.”
Are the 43rd District titles up for grabs?
In the boys’ 43rd District, Lexington Catholic (18-8) looks to win its fifth straight district crown. The unranked Knights recently knocked off No. 4 Madison Central and No. 5 George Rogers Clark but were in trouble against 43rd rival Tates Creek in a 68-65 double overtime home win Jan. 12 and less than comfortable in a 60-53 win Feb. 11. The Knights’ Max Meagher, Everett Stuart and Hank Woodall average double-digit scoring.
“Our district is as tough as anything the state can offer,” Lexington Catholic coach Brandon Salsman said. “We know we’ll have to play really well in order to qualify for the region. On any given night, we’ve proven we can beat anyone, and we’ve proven we can lay an egg, too.”
Paul Laurence Dunbar (21-4) edged out Lafayette (20-9) for the top seed in the girls bracket thanks to the KHSAA’s RPI Standings tiebreaker. The Bulldogs narrowly beat the Generals 51-46 at home Dec. 18, then blew a double-digit second-half lead at Lafayette in a 43-41 loss Jan. 13. Lafayette serves as district tournament host this year.
“We feel we have a great shot,” Dunbar coach Erik Daniels said. “We didn’t show a whole lot against our district opponents this year during the regular season, so we have a lot more we can throw at them that they’re not going to expect. … Our girls are locked in and ready to win a tournament.”
Junior soccer players Layla Flynn and Kaleigh Potts lead Dunbar with 15.9 and 12.6 points per game, respectively. Softball standouts Anna Clay Denton and Addison Combs average double figures for the Generals. Lexington Christian (20-9) played Dunbar and Lafayette close in stretches this season and is led by Piper Graham, a senior point guard who averages 19.2 points per game.
Contenders beyond Lexington
The district finalists from the 42nd and 43rd district tournaments will be lined up against their counterparts in the 41st and 44th districts in the following week’s 11th Region tournaments at Eastern Kentucky University’s Baptist Health Arena.
Most notable among those contenders on the boys’ side is No. 4 Madison Central (26-3), which has Jake Feldhaus, a 6-8 Belmont commit who averages a double-double with 20.8 points and 13.2 rebounds per game. The Indians’ résumé includes a win over Douglass, but they also lost at Lexington Catholic earlier this month.
Despite its losing record this season, Franklin County (10-16) can’t be discounted as a contender out of the girls’ 41st District. Great Crossing (17-10), which snapped the Flyers’ 98-game win streak within the district this season, could make a run as well. Madison Southern (16-14) is the best team in the girls’ 44th.
42nd District tournaments
At Bryan Station High School. Records updated through Feb. 19.
Monday’s first round
Girls: Sayre (13-11) vs. Henry Clay (6-17), 6 p.m.
Boys: Scott County (13-13) vs. Sayre (10-19), 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday’s semifinals
Girls: Frederick Douglass (19-6) vs. Sayre-Henry Clay winner, 6 p.m.
Boys: Frederick Douglass (18-6) vs. Scott County-Sayre winner, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday’s semifinals
Girls: Bryan Station (14-6) vs. Scott County (9-18), 6 p.m.
Boys: Bryan Station (21-7) vs. Henry Clay (17-11), 7:30 p.m.
Friday’s finals
Girls: Championship, 6 p.m.
Boys: Championship, 6 p.m.
43rd District tournaments
At Lafayette High School. Records updated through Feb. 19.
Monday’s first round
Girls: Tates Creek (11-16) vs. Lexington Catholic (8-18), 6 p.m.
Boys: Lexington Christian (12-16) vs. Paul Laurence Dunbar (12-18), 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday’s semifinals
Girls: Paul Laurence Dunbar (21-4) vs. Tates Creek-Lexington Catholic winner, 6 p.m.
Boys: Lexington Catholic (18-8) vs. LCA-Dunbar winner, 7:30 p.m.
Wednesday’s semifinals
Girls: Lafayette (20-9) vs. Lexington Christian (20-9) , 6 p.m.
Boys: Lafayette (15-11) vs. Tates Creek (14-13), 7:30 p.m.
Friday’s finals
Girls: Championship, 6 p.m.
Boys: Championship, 7:30 p.m.
41st District tournaments
At Frankfort’s Wilkinson Gym. Records updated through Feb. 19.
Monday’s first round
Girls: Frankfort (5-21) vs. Frankfort Christian (4-9), 6 p.m.
Boys: Western Hills (4-21) vs. Frankfort Christian (14-15), 8 p.m.
Tuesday’s semifinals
Girls: Franklin County (10-16) vs. Frankfort-Frankfort Christian winner, 6 p.m.
Boys: Great Crossing (17-11) vs. Western Hills-Frankfort Christian winner, 8 p.m.
Wednesday’s semifinals
Girls: Western Hills (18-9) vs. Great Crossing (17-10), 6 p.m.
Boys: Franklin County (11-19) vs. Frankfort (8-16), 8 p.m.
Friday’s finals
Girls: Championship, 6 p.m.
Boys: Championship, 8 p.m.
44th District tournaments
At EKU’s Baptist Health Arena. Records updated through Feb. 19.
Monday’s semifinals
Girls: Model (13-8) vs. Berea (14-13), 6:30 p.m.
Boys: Model (17-11) vs. Berea (12-14), 8 p.m.
Tuesday’s semifinals
Girls: Madison Central (6-20) vs. Madison Southern (16-14) 6:30 p.m.
Boys: Madison Central (26-3) vs. Madison Southern (17-11) 8 p.m.
Friday’s finals
Girls: Championship, 6:30 p.m.
Boys: Championship, 8 p.m.
