Coming off a successful 3-1 trip to Hawaii where they played against some of the best teams in the Nation, The 8-1 Mason County Royals will be defending their #1 State Ranking in the prestigious Lexington Catholic Holiday Classic this weekend.
The Royals open play Thursday Night at 7:30 pm against the winner of the Central Louisville - Lexington Christian Academy game to be played on Wednesday.
In its 12th year, The well attended and widely publicized 24 team tournament runs Dec. 26 - 30 and showcases some of kentucky's finest teams including 4 of the top 10 in the latest bluegrasspreps.com rankings :
(as of 12/17)
1. Mason County
2. Ballard
3. Lexington Catholic
4. Scott County
5. Jeffersontown
6. Bryan Station
7. Covington Catholic
8. Elliott County
9. Adair County
10. Paducah Tilghman
Several teams from Tennessee will also compete.
Kentucky.com / Lexington Herald-Leader, which has a different top 25 ranking than bluegrasspreps.com, says in a preview article :
" (In Addition to Mason County and Lexington Catholic) Five other top-25 teams are in the field, including No. 14 Elliott County, which is 8-0 and averaging 96.5 points; No. 18 June Buchanan, led by senior star Clark Stepp; No. 19 Christian County; No. 21 Covington Catholic; and No. 24 Paintsville. "
If the Royals win their opener on thursday, staying in the winner's bracket, they could potentially face these top seeds :
* JuneBuchanan 6-2 #18 in Herald-Leader Rankings
+ only losses this year are to Top 25 teams Tates Creek and Lexington Catholic
+ Small Private School at Alice Lloyd College in Southeast Kentucky ( 74 students, grades 9-12)
+ Went to Sweet Sixteen Last Year for the first time in school history after winning the 14th Regional Tournament
then ...
* Covington Catholic 7 - 1
+ Ranked #1 in Northern Kentucky by Enquirer.com
+ Covcath's only loss was to Mason County by 10 points at The Fieldhouse earlier this year
+ Opened the season with a win at home over then #2 Lexington Catholic
+ Recent dramatic overtime victory against Lexington Lafayette on 12/21 with junior Luke Maile hitting a three at the end of regulation to send the game to OT.
... or ...
* Grace Christian Academy TN 6 - 1
+ Private School near Knoxville, TN
+ 28-3 record last season.
in the other bracket the favorite is ...
* Lexington Catholicc 7 - 2
+ Ranked # 3 in the State w/ Home Court Advantage
+ Recently returned from trip to Florida where they were 1-1 in the Rock Holiday Classic losing to Boyd Anderson, FL in the second round 66-68
+ Only other loss was away at Covington Catholic on Dec. 1st.
+ Beat Top 25 Tates Creek by 21 points at Tates Creek High School on Dec. 13th.
+ Will host the Royals on Friday January 18, 2008.
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