3rd Region Hoops— It’s the most wonderful time of the year to high school basketball fans in Kentucky.. TOURNAMENT TIME IN THE BLUEGRASS! Every road in the 3rd Region leads to the Owensboro Sportscenter for the next 9 days where 8 teams have aspirations of cutting down the nets of the MECCA of this region & heading to the MECCA of College Basketball; RUPP Arena! The Girls tournament opening rounds will take place tomorrow (2/4) & Tuesday (2/5) The Boys opening round will take place on Wednesday (2/6) & Thursday (2/7). The Girls regional Final 4 will be held Friday (2/8), while the Boys Final 4 will be on Saturday (2/9). We’ll crown a champion on for the Girls on Sunday (2/10) & the Boys champion will be named on Tuesday (2/12). Let’s preview the Girls Monday Night opening round games to get you started.

Breckinridge Co (21-9) VS McLean Co (9-18)

Game Time: 6pm

Game Spread: Breck -19

Regular Season Results: DNP

Key Players To Watch:

Caroline Lucas (BC) – 18ppg, 4rpg

Kayleigh Huffines (BC) – 10ppg, 6rpg

Elizabeth Grimes (BC) – 13ppg

Kenadi Level (MC) – 7ppg

Anna Miller (MC) – 13ppg, 4rpg

Ava Lannum (MC) – 7ppg, 5rpg

3RH’s Take On The Matchup— This is without a doubt, a tough draw for The Lady Cougars as they draw the 11th District Champs, Breck County! McLean Co comes in after losing to rival Muhlenberg Co in the 10th District Final & are led by the sensational 8th Grade guard, Anna Miller who scored 26 points in the district title loss. Sophomore Kenadi Level has turned it on as of late, notably her 19 point, 7 rebound performance VS Ohio Co in the district tournament. Level has the ability to get to the rim at ease for Coach Groves but both Level & Miller as well as others will need to be BIG, if the ladies from Calhoun are going to knock off the Lady Tigers. You can make the case that no team in the region is playing as inspired as Breckinridge. An adversity riddled season, yet still they are playing their best basketball of the season heading into the tournament. No player in the region has played better than Caroline Lucas over the last month & Kayleigh Huffines is without question, the most underrated post player in the region. Elizabeth Grimes looks to be getting her confidence back with each dribble after being out of lineup for 3 games & Kylie Carby is coming into the Sportscenter with every rim she looks at, looking as big as the ocean. Breck is considered one of the heavy favorites to win the whole thing & it’s hard to imagine a scenario where they don’t advance here. A Breck win by a bunch.

Butler County (18-13) VS Owensboro (18-11)

Game Time: 7:45pm

Game Spread: OHS -18

Regular Season Results: DNP

Key Players:

Ava Wilson (BC) – 12ppg, 9rpg

Ann Marie Skaggs (BC) – 11ppg, 6rpg

Taylor Leach (BC) – 9ppg

Shalyn Sprinkles (OHS) – 15ppg

Alyrica Hughes (OHS) – 10ppg, 5rpg

Heleina John (OHS) 10ppg, 6rpg

3RH’s Take On The Matchup—

The Lady Bears win the 12th District Title & get rewarded with an angry OHS squad who feels like they let the 9th district title slip away last week. The Lady Devils are SCARY & come in as one of the favorites to win the regional title. Shalyn Sprinkles can shoot the ball with the best of them & Alyrica Hughes is a veteran who impacts the game in every facet. Heleina John is arguably the most versatile player on the floor.. Freshman Ava Wilson has been stellar for HC Lexie Belcher & Ann Marie Skaggs impacts the game on both ends of the floor. Senior guard Taylor Leach has provided leadership for this squad. Butler Co pulled off the victory over the District favorite Grayson Co in the district final last week but they’ll come in as the underdog, playing with a Nothing to lose mentality. Both teams love to turn their defense into offense so this one will have the looks of an all out DOG FIGHT. Just like in the 6pm game, it’s hard to imagine this one being close in the end & OHS not advancing here. Look for an OHS/Breck Final 4 for the 2nd year in a row!

Enough Talk, GO PLAY! #3RH