Clinton County traveling to Bowling Green is the most enticing opening round matchup, but storylines abound in the 4th Region Boys Basketball Tournament
By Perry Swack
2021 4th Region Championship Schedule
Sunday, March 21 – Quarterfinals
Russellville @ Allen County-Scottsville – 3:00pm
Clinton County @ Bowling Green – 3:00pm
Barren County @ Franklin-Simpson – 3:00pm
Greenwood @ Metcalfe County – 3:00pm
Monday, March 22 – Semifinal #1 @ Diddle Arena
Russellville/Allen vs. Clinton/BG – 6:00pm
Tuesday, March 23 – Semifinal #2 @ Diddle Arena
Barren/Franklin vs. Greenwood/Metcalfe – 6:00pm
Wednesday, March 24 – Championship @ Diddle Arena
Semifinal Winners – 6:00pm
Russellville (9-10) @ Allen County-Scottsville (15-7)
Russellville, the 13th District runner-up, returns to the 4th Region Tournament for the first time since 2017. The Panthers reached the title game that season behind current Bellarmine star, Pedro Bradshaw. This season RHS is led by senior Jaquis Todd, who is averaging 15.9 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. Todd scored 29 points in the district title game loss to Franklin-Simpson, going 5-for-10 from beyond the arc. Lennon Ries also stepped up in the district tournament, scoring 16 points in the decisive semifinal win over Logan County that qualified the Panthers for the region event.
Allen County-Scottsville, the 15th District champion, is a veteran-laden squad that relies heavily upon six seniors within coach Brad Bonds’ rotation. Three players average at least 9.5 points per game, led by Mason Shirley at 18.6. Shirley averaged 18 points in the district tournament as the Patriots won their first 15th District championship since 2010. Fellow senior Jax Cooper averages a shade under 15 points per game and scored 28 in the district semifinal victory over Monroe County that qualified the Patriots for their third-straight trip to the region tournament.
Clinton County (20-4) @ Bowling Green (20-2)
When Clinton County lost to Metcalfe County in the 16th District championship game, there was 33% chance the Bulldogs would draw the Purples of Bowling Green for their opening round matchup. 33% turned into 100% on Friday morning as the top two teams in the 4th Region drew one another for their Sunday quarterfinal game. It is often said that “to be the best…you must beat the best”. Well, whoever wins on Sunday at Bowling Green High School will have defeated the next best team in the 4th Region. The winner of Clinton-BG will also become the clear-cut favorite to advance to Rupp Arena for the KHSAA state tournament.
Nick Brown had an outstanding 16th District Tournament for Clinton County. The senior scored 26 points in the semifinal win over Cumberland County, before leading the team with 19 points in a 70-64 loss to Metcalfe County in the finale. Clinton County averages 26 rebounds per game; however, in the district tournament the Bulldogs only averaged 18.5 per contest. The team also was allowing 51 points per game heading into the district title game – it gave up 70 that night. Coach Todd Messer and his coaching staff will be preaching to their team the importance of their normally consistent defense and rebounding advantage.
Bowling Green has not lost in nearly a month, winning eight straight games on the road to the program’s eighth-straight 14th District championship. The Purples put the clamps down on South Warren and Greenwood in the district tournament last week. BG held South Warren to only 18 points, 35 points below its season average. The Purples then held the Gators to 44 points, 22 points below its season average. A talented senior class led by Isaiah Mason, Jaxson Banks, Jacobi Huddleston, Conner Cooper, Jordan Dingle, and Trace Flanary have suffered three-consecutive 4th Region championship game losses. This group seems determined to reach it back to Rupp Arena for the first time since 2017, when the Purples won the state title.
Greenwood (15-12) @ Metcalfe County (17-9)
Back on January 22, Greenwood 30% from the field (and 17% from the three-point line) en route to a 65-43 loss at Warren Central. Fast forward nearly two months later and the script had flipped. In the district semifinal matchup between the Dragons and the Gators, Greenwood shot 56% from the field (and 60% from three) to run past Warren Central by a score of 65-48. Coach Will McCoy’s club will now be looking to make some noise as it makes its first region tournament appearance since 2017. If the Gators can get past the Hornets, it will be the program’s first win in the 4th Region Tournament since 2008 – the last time a team not named Warren Central or Bowling Green represented the 4th Region in the state tournament. If the Gators are to leave Edmonton with a win, it will be behind the balanced scoring efforts of its Big 3 – Cade Stinnett, Aaron Brown, and Marc Grant.
Not only did Metcalfe County qualify for its second 4th Region Tournament appearance since 2012, but it also won the 16th District championship for the first time since 2001. The Hornets last qualified for the event in 2019, when they lost an overtime heartbreaker to Logan County, 72-70. In my 16th District Tournament preview, I predicted that the path to the Hornets’ victory was through the scoring balance of the squad’s Big 4 – Wyatt Blythe, Peyton Dial, Boston Devore, and Jax Allen. Three players scored in double figures in their overtime win over Russell County in the semifinals, while all four tallied 10+ points in the district finale against Clinton County. Three weeks ago, the Hornets rallied at home to beat the Gators, 69-64. Timely stops and clutch free throw shooting clinched the win for Metcalfe. It will need that again on Sunday to advance to Diddle Arena.
Barren County (20-8) @ Franklin-Simpson (14-3)
The winner of Barren County-Franklin-Simpson will likely be favored to advance over the winner of Greenwood-Metcalfe County, giving the game in Franklin an extra bit of juice. All four teams on the lower end of the tournament bracket are grateful to know they won’t have to meet Bowling Green or Clinton County until the championship game. But the Trojans and Wildcats will do well to focus on the task at hand – winning the game in front of them. When these two teams met back on February 23 in Glasgow, Dre Miller scored 20 points and grabbed four rebounds to lead the Wildcats to a 50-41 win. Mason Griggs scored 14 points to lead the Trojans. Barren County is averaging around 59 points per game as a team. In its district semifinal victory over Glasgow, Coach Warren Cunningham’s crew scored 71. However, in its district championship loss, the team only managed 48. The Trojans will need to be closer to its average of 59 points to have a chance at ousting Franklin from the tournament.
Coach Dee Spencer’s club closed the season winning nine of its final ten games, including two double-digit victories in the 13th District Tournament. The championship was the Wildcats’ first since 2017. One of the hottest teams in the field, Franklin has continued to get more production behind its two main scorers, Miller and Kyjuan Stutzman. In the district tournament, DeMarcus Hogan averaged 17 points per game, while both Gabe Jones and Jalen Briscoe also scored in double figures in at least one game. Teams with balance + star power often make for a tough out in March.
My Predictions for the Quarterfinals
Allen County-Scottsville 77, Russellville 70
Bowling Green 52, Clinton County 45
Greenwood 65, Metcalfe County 61
Franklin-Simpson 63, Barren County 55
