2021 Kentucky Mr. and Miss Basketball finalists announced. See all 33 players.
Lexington Catholic’s Ben Johnson and Franklin County’s Brooklynn Miles are two of the 33 nominees announced Friday morning for boys’ and girls’ high school basketball’s highest individual honor, Kentucky’s Mr. and Miss Basketball.
Johnson and Miles were among the 17 boys and 16 girls receiving player of the year honors in their respective regions and who subsequently will be candidates for 2021’s Mr. and Miss Basketball awards.
Coaches and Kentucky sports media had the opportunity to submit names of seniors to be considered for region players of the year and now will choose from the announced lists for Mr. and Miss Basketball in a separate vote.
Notably, Marshall County’s Zion Harmon, a state champion with Bowling Green as an eighth-grader who is committed to Western Kentucky University and is considered by many as the state’s top college prospect, is the only Mr. Basketball nominee to share player of the year honors in his region. McCracken County’s Noah Dumas also got 1st Region honors.
Last year, there were two nominees from the 5th Region on the boys’ side and dual nominees from three regions on the girls’ side.
Also notable about the list of Mr. Basketball candidates are the names that aren’t there, including the 7th Region’s Sekou Kalle of DeSales, a teammate of region nominee Devin Perry. In the 9th Region, Beechwood’s Scotty Draud and St. Henry’s Wyatt Vieth missed out. And in Lexington, Frederick Douglass’s Dashawn Jackson, who recently committed to Eastern Kentucky, got passed over.
The nominees were announced Friday morning via streaming video by the Kentucky Lions Eye Foundation, which conducts the survey of coaches and media members in conjunction with the Kentucky Association of Basketball Coaches each year.
Mr. Basketball has recognized the state’s best boys’ player since 1954 and Miss Basketball has honored the top girls’ player since 1976. It’s an award for seniors, and the criteria for winning is up to the individual voter — some showing deference to outstanding senior seasons while others use their ballot to recognize overall career achievements. Whatever the criteria, the awards are the subject of discussion, debate and celebration each year.
The winners will be announced at the 2021 Virtual Mr. and Miss Kentucky Basketball Awards Ceremony on April 18. Tickets are required to view the event and are on sale at mrandmisskybasketball.com/tickets. The event serves as a fundraiser for the Kentucky Lions Eye Foundation.
Mr. Basketball nominees
1st Region: Noah Dumas, McCracken County; Zion Harmon, Marshall County.
2nd Region: Destin Allen, Webster County.
3rd Region: Nash Devine, Muhlenberg County.
4th Region: Isaiah Mason, Bowling Green.
5th Region: Jaquias Franklin, Elizabethtown.
6th Region: Devin Perry, DeSales.
7th Region: Cameron Pope, Male.
8th Region: Kelly Niece, Simon Kenton.
9th Region: Sam Vinson, Highlands.
10th Region: Grant Profitt, Scott.
11th Region: Ben Johnson, Lexington Catholic.
12th Region: Kade Grundy, Somerset.
13th Region: Jevonte Turner, Knox Central.
14th Region: Jaz Johnson, Wolfe County.
15th Region: Isaiah May, Johnson Central.
16th Region: Mason Moore, Rowan County.
Miss Basketball nominees
1st Region: Cayson Conner, Marshall County.
2nd Region: Sadie Wurth, Henderson County.
3rd Region: Aleigha Mucker, Breckinridge County.
4th Region: Lucy Patterson, Warren East.
5th Region: Ella Thompson, Bethlehem.
6th Region: Tiarra East, Butler
7th Region: Taylor Price, Central.
8th Region: Brynna Blackburn, South Oldham.
9th Region: Brie Crittendon, Ryle.
10th Region: Mya Meredith, Scott.
11th Region: Brooklynn Miles, Franklin County.
12th Region: Macey Blevins, Wayne County.
13th Region: Mikkah Siler, Williamsburg.
14th Region: Lexy Lynch, Owsley County.
15th Region: Katie Moore, Floyd Central.
16th Region: Harley Paynter, Boyd County.
This story was originally published March 12, 2021 at 9:59 AM.
