TURNOVERS

by Alan B. Gibson

Tourney time in Kentucky – part 6

And then there were two!!

The Madison Central Indians were joined Saturday night by the Lady Knights of Marion County as champions of high school basketball in this roundball crazy state of Kentucky.

Makayla Epps – one of two U.K. signees on the Marion County squad – led her Lady Knights to a title game win over Notre Dame last Saturday night, laying claim to the 2013 Sweet 16 championship by a score of 52-36.

In sweeping through the KHSAA brackets in Bowling Green, the Lady Knights did what no other team has accomplished in Kentucky since 1984, finishing the year with a perfect mark – in this case 39-0.

I didn’t get to attend the girls’ Sweet 16 last week in Diddle, but I did watch several of the games via the live computer streaming that KHSAA and iHigh offered this year and it was pretty clear early in each game that all of the other 15 teams in the field this year were battling for second place.

Just how much in front of the field was Marion County? Considering how the Lady Knights glided through the brackets – they ended Anderson County’s 26 game winning streak with a semi-final victory score of 72-49, thumped Montgomery County in the quarter-final round 71-32 and got their Sweet 16 run started with an opening round route of Bowling Green, 64-43 – I’d have to agree with those who are calling this year’s championship squad the best Kentucky has ever produced.

Epps, who is the daughter of former U.K. basketball standout Anthony Epps, was named the tournament MVP and will likely be named Kentucky’s Miss Basketball later this spring when the ballots are counted. She did get my vote already, along with Madison Central’s Dominique Hawkins, who hopefully will become another U.K. signee later this spring.

Mr. and Miss Basketball ballots will be counted later this week, and the winners will be announced by the Kentucky Lions at a March 29 banquet to be held in Louisville.

So, now that we have the KHSAA finished, crowns have been awarded and spring sports can officially be brought front and center – it’s time to watch a little NCAA basketball and deal with those brackets for a couple of weeks.

Hmmm, now – which NCAA regional did the CATS go to?

It’s tourney time in Kentucky – don’t call me until April!