Owensboro KY— The 2022-23 Boys Basketball season came to a close on Saturday night in Lexington KY as the 4th Region Champion Warren Central Dragons defeated George Rogers Clark 64-60 to claim the schools 2nd State Championship. Warren Central avenged last seasons 1 point loss to GRC in the rematch. Chapelle Whitney was named State Tournament M-V-P. Congratulations to Coach Unseld, Warren Central High School & the 4th Region. Now let’s dive into the 3rd Region & what an exciting season it was. Going into the year, Ohio County, Owensboro Catholic and Owensboro were considered the favorites by most media outlets, so we’ll hit on those 3 programs first. Owensboro Catholic finished the season 28-6 overall, 19-3 against 3rd Region opponents and 3rd Region Tournament Runner-Up. Aces Senior point guard Brian Griffith won Messenger Inquire Region Player of the Year, 3rd Region Hoops Player of the Year and became Owensboro Catholics All Time Leading Scorer. The Aces ended the year not playing up to their standards, seemingly sleep walking through the post season at times, but Head Coach Tim Riley put together an impressive campaign and ultimately finished 1 win away from RUPP Arena. Ohio County had a tremendous regular season, finishing 23-9 and went undefeated against 3rd Region opponents during the regular season. With all that said, the Eagles sputtered to end the season. The last 3 weeks of the year did not go as Head Coach Paul Decker planned, losing their final 3 games. Ohio was upset by Muhlenberg Co in the 10th District Title game & fell to Owensboro in the 1st Round of the 3rd Region Tournament. Paul Decker was the unanimous Coach of The Year by all Media Outlets covering the 3rd Region & Eagle Junior Elijah Decker was in the Region Player of the year conversation all season long, and deservedly so. Senior sharpshooter Parker Culbertson had a big year as well. Now to the Red Devils of Owensboro. The regular season had its challenges. Roster changes, players in and out of the line up and an untimely tragic death to very beloved member of the OHS community really made it tough and rocky for Owensboro. In the midst of the trouble, there remained 2 constants – Coach Rod Drake and Senior Super Star Kenyatta Carbon. The Red Devils stayed the course throughout every hurdle they faced & began to hit their stride right as the regular season ended. Owensboro claimed the 9th District Championship and won the 3rd Region Championship for the 45th time in school history, BOTH with relative ease. Owensboro saw it’s season end in heartbreak at the hands of Ashland Blazer at RUPP Arena in a game that the Devils controlled and led until the final minute of the game. Owensboro took the Region on one hell of a ride throughout the post season & Kenyatta Carbon ended his time on Frederica Street playing about as good as anyone in the bluegrass. OHS ended the year at 19-11. Staying in the 9th District, Daviess County dealt with the injury bug all season, finishing 13-15 overall. The Panthers Gage Phelps put together a very solid Junior Campaign gathering All Region honors by multiple media outlets. Apollo saw its woeful ways continue, finishing 5-23 overall. This off season is very critical for the Eagle program. In the 10th District, McLean County & Head Coach Darren Lynam followed their magical Region Runner UP finish a season ago with another impressive season, finishing 21-9 overall. The lone stain in Calhoun? The Cougars failed to make it back to the Sportscenter. Senior Jaxon Floyd was a Top 5 player in the region all season. Muhlenberg County entered the season in a Rebuild after losing a senior class that won Back-To-Back Region Titles as well bringing in a new Head Coach in Aaron Morris. The Mustangs regular season was anything but up to the standard of those in Muhlenberg County, but the Stangs’ continued to work. Continued to push & by the time District Tournament rolled around, they were playing their best ball of the season. The Mustangs upset McLean County & Ohio County to claim the schools 5th Consecutive 10th District Title. Mustang Senior Kadin Ray and Junior Maddox Jernigan led the 3rd Region Cinderella on an improbable run to the Sportscenter before falling to Breckinridge County in the opening round of the 3rd Region Tournament. Muhlenberg County finished the season 8-23. On to the 11th District. Hancock County entered the season considered by several to be a contender, just behind Ohio, OHS & Owensboro Catholic. The Hornets locked up the top seed in the District Tournament & won the 11th District Title. Hancock was veteran led and very balanced. An injury to arguably its best player, Ryan Ogle put a damper on the Hornets Post Season hopes, but the season was still a very solid one, finishing 18-12 overall in what ended up being Coach Michael Orr’s final ride. Breckinridge County grinded it’s way through the regular season that included a notable win over Owensboro. The Tigers finished 12-18, as 11th District Runner Up, and fell to Owensboro Catholic in the FINAL 4. Senior Hunter Barr was one of the top big men in the area and ended his career playing exceptional through the post season. Meade County finished the season 8-19, failing to qualify for regional tournament., a feat that don’t happen very often in Brandenburg, however The Green Wave return the majority of its production and will be much improved next season. Cloverport finished the season 7-22, but their were positives for the Aces to build on. Now to the 12th District that was arguably the most competitive. Let’s start in Morgantown. Head Coach Calvin Dockery, who in our opinion is one of the most underrated coaches in Western Kentucky added a MASSIVE transfer from South Warren in Ty Price, who is originally from Butler County. Price is one of those players who is a PROGRAM ALTERING addition & that’s exactly what took place in Bear Country. Ty Price put together one of the best seasons in 3rd Region History & one of the best seasons in the state. The individual success translated to Butler County having one of its best seasons in school history, finishing 22-11 and a trip to the 3rd Region Final 4. Sophomore Lawson Rice put together an impressive season as well, finishing as one of the top players in the region. The Price & Rice duo along with Trever Deweese, Justin Castlen and co will be a FORCE for the next couple seasons. Edmonson County claimed the 12th District Championship but ended the year on unfortunate terms. The Wildcats were red hot, playing as well as anyone in the region but lost Senior Star Braxton Highbaugh the night before the Wildcats were scheduled to play Owensboro Catholic. Highbaugh was playing at an elite level, and would’ve certainly made the Opening round matchup with Catholic a lot more interesting. Despite the unfortunate end, it doesn’t take away from the season the Wildcats had, finishing 18-13 & District Champs. Highbaugh & Braden Wall highlighted a great senior class for the folks of Brownsville Kentucky. Head Coach Brad Johnson remains one of the best coaches in the area. Whitesville Trinity put together another very competitive and solid season behind a senior class that will go down as one of the most decorated classes in school history. Landon Huff was a top player in the region and will go down as one of the best Raiders to ever play. Coach Nathan West continues to do wonders in Whitesville. Trinity finished 14-16 overall. Grayson County had an up and down season finishing 9-20 but there is a TON of positives for the Cougars. There is some potential Stars blooming in Leitchfield.. 8th Graders Kadin Hanshaw and Jack Logsdon highlight a young core that quite possibly could bring Coach Travis Johnston and the Cougars back near the top of the region for years to come. Senior River Blanton saw his career end, taking a highly decorated career into graduation. The future is bright for Grayson County. The region loses some STARS, but next season will see several stars RETURN. This off-season will likely see multiple coaching changes across the region and rumors are already circulating of possible program altering transfers making their way to the area. We’ve enjoyed coming to your communities, experiencing the atmospheres & seeing talent on display. Despite the 3rd Region failing to win at RUPP ARENA since 2015, there is GREAT REASON for optimism that that will soon change. After all With talent like Ty Price, Elijah Decker, Jonathan Moss and the potential transfers coming in, how could one not be? And with that, we close the door on the 2022-23 season. Enjoy the offseason.