Chane Behanan leads All-State boys

FIRST TEAM

Player, school Ht. Class Ppg Rpg

Chane Behanan, Bowling Green (43) 6-8 Sr. 23.3 14.4

Anthony Hickey, Christian Co. (12) 5-11 Sr. 18.6 x-4.7

George Fant, Warren Central (3) 6-7 Sr. 21.5 11.2

Remy Abell, Eastern (2) 6-4 Sr. 16.0 2.7

Ryan Taylor, Western (6) 6-6 Sr. 26.6 14.2

DeVante Parker, Ballard (8) 6-3 Sr. 19.7 7.0

Timmy Knipp, Elliott Co. (6) 6-8 Sr. 25.6 9.9

Robbie Stenzel, Clark Co. (1) 6-4 Sr. 13.1 4.5

Marcellus Barksdale, Tates Creek 6-4 Sr. 15.2 10.2

Vinny Zollo, Clark Co. (1) 6-8 Sr. 11.8 8.7

SECOND TEAM

Player, school Ht. Class Ppg Rpg

Lyonell Gaines, Eastern (1) 6-6 Sr. 16.0 7.8

Jermaine Jackson, Iroquois 6-5 Sr. 22.6 10.8

Ryan Fucci, Tates Creek (1) 6-3 Sr. 16.0 4.8

Deondre McWhorter, Moore 6-8 Sr. 15.3 9.5

Jordan Percell, Campbellsville 6-6 Sr. 20.0 9.5

Kameron Woods, Eastern 6-9 Sr. 8.2 8.7

Taylor Martin, Lexington Catholic (1) 6-5 Sr. 18.0 7.6

Corey Rogers, Clark Co. 6-4 Sr. 15.5 7.3

Jordan Shanklin, Warren Central 5-11 Sr. 16.3 x-3.8

Hobo McCoy, Pike Central 5-10 Sr. 31.5 3.4

Chane Behanan

Behanan turned out to be the big-time player he was projected to be when he transferred to Bowling Green from Cincinnati Aiken before his junior year. In two seasons with the Purples, Behanan averaged 23.8 points, 13.1 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 2.2 blocked shots.

Coach D.J. Sherrill calls Behanan, who signed with Louisville, the best rebounder he's seen on the high school level. Behanan couldn't quite get Bowling Green to the Sweet Sixteen. It lost heart-breakers to Warren Central in the 4th Region finals the last two seasons.

Behanan is the only player to make the all-state first team for the second year in a row.

Anthony Hickey

It was a storybook senior year for Hickey. After quarterbacking Christian County's football team to a runner-up finish in Class 5A, he quarterbacked the Colonels' basketball team to the Sweet Sixteen championship, then was named Mr. Basketball.

Christian County Coach Kerry Stovall described Hickey as "the fastest human" he's ever seen with a basketball. He averaged 18.0 points, 4.6 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 3.8 steals this season.

Hickey has narrowed his college choices to South Carolina, LSU, Dayton and possibly two-time NCAA runner-up Butler.

George Fant

Warren Central Coach Tim Riley raves about how Fant developed his overall game the last three years, saying the big guy became a reliable defender, solid ball-handler, accomplished passer and good outside shooter.

Fant, who led the Dragons to the Sweet Sixteen as a sophomore and senior, ended his career as the third-leading scorer in the program's history with 1,805 points, and the top rebounder with 1,039.

Fant signed to play college hoops for hometown WKU.

Remy Abell

If he hadn't been surrounded by three other Division I players, Abell would have put up eye-popping numbers. His team-first attitude couldn't hide his talent, however.

Eagles Coach Jason Couch considered Abell the best all-around player in the state, not just because of his scoring, rebounding and defending, but also his leadership. Abell finished his career with 1,441 points, 356 rebounds, 190 assists and 150 steals, and helped Eastern to state tournament appearances in 2009 and 2011. He signed with Bradley in November, but after the Braves fired Coach Jim Les last month, Abell is getting his release from Bradley and will reopen his recruitment.

Ryan Taylor

Taylor transferred from Indianapolis Lawrence North to play his senior season for his uncle/coach, Paul Handley, at Louisville Western. Taylor made a quick adjustment to Kentucky hoops and put up the best double-double numbers in the state, averaging 26.6 points and 14.2 rebounds, and helping make Western a contender in the 6th Region. Taylor committed to Louisville, but didn't sign with the Cardinals last fall and is no longer considered a U of L recruit. He may be bound for a prep school or junior college.

DeVante Parker

After making a bid for Mr. Football honors as a standout wide receiver at Ballard, Parker was a contender for Mr. Basketball thanks to a standout senior season.

There was no more dynamic player than Parker, who helped the young Bruins develop into one of the best teams in the state. He evolved from a good role player as a junior on Ballard's state runner-up team into a big scorer and leader this season.

Parker averaged 19.7 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.4 steals, and was voted 7th Region player of the year. In his career he had 1,075 points, 445 rebounds, 266 assists and 217 steals.

Timmy Knipp

Knipp enjoyed a great ride at Elliott County, starting when he was an eighth-grader on the first of three consecutive state tournament teams.

As a junior, he led the state in scoring with a 30-point average. Before his senior season he signed with EKU, then went out and earned Gatorade's Kentucky player of the year honors. The 6-8 swing man averaged 25.6 points, 9.9 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 5.7 blocks and 3.0 steals.

Knipp had eight triple-doubles this season to cap what Coach Greg Adkins called a "storybook career."

Robbie Stenzel

Stenzel had nice bookends in his career at Clark County. As an eighth-grader, he was instrumental in the Cardinals' run to the Sweet Sixteen. As a senior, he led Clark County back to Rupp Arena. Coach Scott Humphrey called Stenzel the most unassuming star player he's ever had. Stenzel was an offensive threat from the get-go, and wound up as the Cards' all-time top scorer with 2,056 points. He developed an all-around game in five years of varsity ball, and was one of Clark County's best defenders as a senior. Stenzel signed with EKU.

Marcellus Barksdale

Barksdale stepped in as a freshman and had an immediate impact at Tates Creek. It was a sign of things to come.

Four years later, he leaves as the third-leading scorer in Commodores' history, with 1,499 points (trailing only Michael Sparks' 1,995 and Derrick "T.T." Wilson's 1,623). Barksdale did it while sharing the load with Ryan Fucci, who had 1,488 points in his four-year career. Barksdale was also a force on the boards, averaging a double-double this season (15.2 points, 10.2 rebounds) in helping Wayne Breeden's team climb to a top-5 ranking in the state and upsets of pre-season No. 1 Jeffersontown and regular-season No. 1 Eastern. Barksdale signed with IUPUI.

Vinny Zollo

Zollo and his family moved to Winchester after he committed to then-UK Coach Billy Gillispie following his freshman year in Greenfield, Ohio. That put Zollo under a microscope as soon as he arrived in Winchester. After his sophomore season, UK fired Gillispie and hired John Calipari, leaving Zollo out of the Cats' recruiting picture. Through it all, Zollo handled himself with a positive outlook, and he wound up signing with WKU instead. Clark County Coach Scott Humphrey lauded Zollo's commitment to improving his game. He finished his Clark County career with 1,407 points and 1,079 rebounds.

Honorable mention: Clay Cinnamon (Mercer Co.); Matt Day (Buckhorn); Dominique Dawkins (Madison Central); Gavin Dunagan (Wayne Co.); Josh Forrest (Paducah Tilghman); Chris Freeman (Muhlenberg Co.); Jake Giesler (Newport Catholic); Donovan Kates (Christian Co.); Daniel Kiesling (Henry Clay); Tony Kimbro Jr. (Jeffersontown); Ben Madon (Bell Co.); Tamron Manning (Scott Co.); Nathan Martin (Betsy Layne); Jay Middleton (Ballard Memorial); Zach Price (Jeffersontown); Treg Setty (Mason Co.); Austin Shearer (Wayne Co.); Kellen Smith (Scott); Leonard Smith (Fulton Co.); Jacody Taylor (Danville); D.J, Townsend (Rowan Co.); Adam Wing (Rowan Co.).

Coach of the Year: Wayne Breeden (Tates Creek) x-assists

This story was originally published April 17, 2011 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Chane Behanan leads All-State boys."