Top five: The best boys’ basketball teams in the 11th Region for the 2019-20 season
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2019-20 High School Basketball Preview
The Herald-Leader/Kentucky.com is publishing season preview stories each day leading up to the start of the 2019-20 high school basketball season on Monday, Dec. 2. You can read everything we’ve published to this point by clicking on this drop-down list. All of the stories are also available in our Sunday, Dec. 1 print edition.
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The last time Henry Clay won the 11th Region Tournament it was 2005.
Coincidentally, the next season, statewide realignment put Scott County in the Blue Devils’ path in both the region and in the 42nd District.
The two schools have met in the district finals seven times and in the region finals twice over the last decade. And while Henry Clay has its share of 42nd titles during that time (four, including last year), Scott County has won the bigger prize that comes with a trip to the Sweet Sixteen (six, including last year).
“It’s every bit as hard as I thought it was, (but) I feel like we’ve represented well,” Coach Daniel Brown said of the Blue Devils’ success since he took over in 2006. “You’ve just got to stay at it.”
Now, with Scott County having graduated seven seniors and splitting talent with the new Great Crossing High School, the Blue Devils and the rest of the league are looking to end the Cardinals’ region title streak at two.
“We’re definitely not top heavy,” Brown said of the region competition. “But I don’t think Scott County’s going to drop off that much, not like everybody thinks. I know I’m not. … But I do think it’s going to be more wide open — some more parity.”
Henry Clay, to start, has Marques Warrick a 6-foot-3 senior guard committed to Northern Kentucky and rated as one of the top players in the state. He’s a big part of the reason that 13 11th Region coaches picked the Blue Devils as the preseason favorites.
“We’re going to be really good,” Warrick said recently after his signing day ceremony. “Obviously, we’re going to be the favorites coming into the region, so we have high expectations. I think we’re going to fulfill that.”
Warrick’s confidence comes in part from having a senior-dominant team that includes 6-2 Marquis Mackey and 6-5 Jackson Phillips returning to a team that went 28-6 last season. Add in newcomers Sebian Dillard, a senior St. Xavier transfer, and Aziel Blackwell, a junior transfer out of New Jersey.
“We’ve got a good mixture with the team,” Brown said. “We had a solid season last year, and I think that’s going to help. My returning guys want to get back there, and I think that’s a key.
“Your whole team is built on leadership and the seniors — what kind of culture they bring. I’ve always believed that. And we’ll go as far as these seniors want to go.”
A survey of the region’s coaches reveals many believe Lexington Catholic, Paul Laurence Dunbar and Lafayette could be in the mix, as well.
Brown likes his chances, though.
“I think we’re going to be a tough out,” he said.
The next four
(Last season’s record in parentheses)
2. Lexington Catholic (14-16): The Knights return junior standout Ben Johnson and four senior starters who Coach Brandon Salsman expects to “gel very well this year. We are excited about the season.” That will include a midseason appearance in the Kentucky 2A Championships, a new chance to prove themselves and maybe get some hardware.
3. Paul Laurence Dunbar (14-18): Coach Scott Chalk expects defense and rebounding to be a strength of his young, athletic team that includes 6-5 sophomore Tim Hall, who ranks among the 11th Region’s players to watch, according to the Herald-Leader’s coaches survey.
4. Lafayette (18-12): Ray Surratt, a 6-7 senior, leads a team Coach Mike Mendenhall believes will be able to play 10-12 deep on “any given night with a lot of interchangeable parts, which should allow us to adapt and play different styles depending on the competition.”
5. Scott County (35-4): Longtime assistant Tim Glenn takes over from the legendary Billy Hicks, who retired after the Cardinals’ run to a second straight Sweet Sixteen finals. He has 6-5 senior Terrin Hamilton to build around. “Expectations are not lowered in Scott County,” Glenn said. “We are definitely looking to make noise. … I feel that we definitely have enough to contend for another 11th region title.”
This story was originally published December 2, 2019 at 6:54 AM.
