Small school state tournament, coaching milestones, player milestones and more in the latest basketball bites, a weekly column dedicated to all the happenings on the hardwood in Northern Kentucky.
Hester gets 100th win
The 100th win for Walton-Verona boys basketball coach Mike Hester came at the perfect time. It was in the Bearcats 8th Region All “A” championship game, a 60-50 victory over Owen County on Jan. 18.
Hester took over the program in the 2019-20 season and got his 100th win in his sixth season with the team. In his stead, the Bearcats are 101-72 (his 101st win coming the next day) with a district title coming in the 2021-22 season. They’ve also won the regional All “A” title four times.
Hester and the Bearcats head to Owensboro on Thursday to face Ballard Memorial in the first round of the All “A” state tournament. Tip-off is 8:30 p.m. CST at Brescia University.
All “A” state tourneys
The All “A” Classic state tournament is underway this week, starting on Wednesday and running through Sunday.
Six teams from northern Kentucky qualified, winning their respective region tournaments.
The girls first round matchups got started on Wednesday with the boys on Thursday.
On Wednesday, the back-to-back defending champs Holy Cross lost to Bethlehem in the first round, 70-64. Bishop Brossart defeated Louisville Holy Cross 57-18 and Walton-Verona lost to Danville Christian, 62-32.
The girls quarterfinals resume on Friday. Bishop Brossart takes on Lexington Christian Academy at 10 a.m. CST at the Owensboro Sportscenter.
The boys tournament got underway with first round matchups on Thursday. Bishop Brossart meets Pineville at 10 a.m. CST, Beechwood takes on Owensboro Catholic at 11:30 a.m. CST. Walton-Verona is the last first round game of the day against Ballard Memorial at Brescia University at 8:30 p.m. CST.
Sullivan gets 1,000
Beechwood’s Jack Sullivan scored his 1,000th career point in the Tigers 9th Region All “A” championship victory over Newport.
Sullivan hit a 3-pointer in the first quarter to accomplish the feat. He was later named Tournament MVP, going for 27 points in the title game.
The Tigers senior leads the team in scoring and rebounding with 17.5 points and 6.9 rebounds per game. He’s doing it efficiently, with 56/48/70 shooting splits.
Sullivan and the Tigers will face Owensboro Catholic in the first round of the All “A” state tournament on Thursday at 11:30 a.m. CST at the Owensboro Sportscenter.
Rondon gets 1,000th point
Newport senior Yamil Rondon hit 1,000 career points in the Wildcats 69-32 victory over Bellevue on Jan. 20.
Rondon, limited to just four games so far this season due to injury, is putting up 14 points per game in those contests. He transferred over from Cooper after last season.
Jayasuriya hits 1,000 points, 500 rebounds
Campbell County junior Isabella Jayasuriya recently passed two milestones in her career. On Dec. 21, she pulled down her 500th career rebound and on Jan. 18, she eclipsed the 1,000 career point mark.
Green posts 20-20 night
Highlands senior Marissa Green posted a 26 point, 23 rebound night in their 65-40 victory over Ryle on Jan. 21.
The 23 rebounds was a career-high for Green. She’s averaging 14.5 points and 7.4 rebounds for the 14-4 Bluebirds.
Green is committed to University of Illinois-Chicago.
Reis beats buzzer
St. Henry’s Jacob Reis hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer in the Crusaders 68-67 overtime victory over Bishop Brossart on Jan. 21.
Reis finished with nine points in the contest, all of them coming from the 3-point line.
It snapped a three-game losing streak for St. Henry as they improved to 6-9 on the season. They’ll look to make it two in a row when they play at Holmes on Thursday.
Bellevue gets to play at Historic Hoosier Gym
Many teams over the years have traveled to Knightstown, Indiana to play in the historic gym where Hoosiers was filmed.
The Bellevue boys and girls basketball team added their names to that list with a contest against Oldham County on Jan. 18. Bellevue girls won their game 73-45 while the Bellevue boys lost 86-51.