Dunbar, Henry Clay favored in loaded boys’ 11th Region

Tournament bracket

A public school from Lexington hasn’t represented the 11th Region in the boys’ Sweet Sixteen for 11 years. This year, there are two that aren’t just among the favorites to represent the region, but to go to Rupp Arena and win the whole thing.

Paul Laurence Dunbar and Henry Clay are ranked No. 2 and No. 3, respectively, behind No. 1 Covington Catholic out of the 9th Region. Dunbar hasn’t advanced to the Sweet Sixteen since 1997, when future Transylvania star Collier Mills was throwing down jams for the Bulldogs. Henry Clay last went to the Sweet Sixteen in 2005, the most recent public school to come out of the city (Lexington Catholic has advanced four times since then).

Dunbar might have the most athletic trio in the state in seniors Jordan Lewis and Darius Williams — a Mr. Basketball candidate — coupled with star junior Taveion Hollingsworth. Junior center Dontell Brown, a potential Division I prospect on the football field, has blossomed into a significant post threat under the tutelage of ex-Cat Marquis Estill. Earlier in the season, some coaches in the region said if tournaments were best-of-seven series, nobody in the state could beat the Bulldogs.

Thankfully for the other 11th Region contenders, it’s one-and-done from here on out and Henry Clay has the backcourt chops to thrive in such a setting. Isaiah “Pun” Tisdale, also a Mr. Basketball candidate, and Leander Ridgeway can fill it up from beyond the arc as well as attack the rim with precision and creativity. Sophomore Justin Mitchell has played big minutes in the second half of the season for the Blue Devils, one of only four in-state teams to have beaten Dunbar this season.

Dunbar will have to get by Madison Southern and Henry Clay past Woodford County on Thursday to produce what would be a must-see matchup in EKU’s Alumni Coliseum on Saturday afternoon.

Lafayette, ranked 14th in the state, is on the opposite side of the bracket from Dunbar and Henry Clay, meaning an all-Lexington finals, as happened last year between Bryan Station and LexCath, is in the cards again. When their shots from long distance are falling, few teams are more lethal than the Generals. It’s also helped by having senior big man Ross Jenkins, who leads the team at 15.1 ppg, patrolling the paint. They open with Franklin County on Wednesday.

No. 15 Madison Central is the only other team in the region field to have upended Dunbar this season. The Indians’ reward for winning their 21st straight 44th District title and a 20-11 season? A first-round meeting with No. 11 Scott County on Wednesday. Grant Brockman, a senior who watched from the pine on Madison Central’s 2013 state-title team, averages 14.1 ppg to lead the Indians. Michael Moreno, a freshman equipped to compete for Mr. Basketball honors when 2019 rolls around, averages a team-best 14.7 for the Cardinals, stocked to be a top-10 fixture for the next several years.

This story was originally published March 1, 2016 at 4:00 PM with the headline "Dunbar, Henry Clay favored in loaded boys’ 11th Region."