The Kentucky Association of Basketball Coaches released their Region players and coaches of the year on Friday with the 9th Region having split winners in the players of the year.
Covington Catholic’s Caden Miller and Highlands’ Nathan Vinson won the boys co-KABC 9th Region Player of the Year while Ryle’s Quinn Eubank and Holy Cross’ Julia Hunt won the girls co-KABC 9th Region Player of the Year. The boys KABC 9th Region Coach of the Year was Boone County’s Nathan Browning while Holy Cross’ Ted Arlinghaus won the girls 9th Region KABC Coach of the Year.
Caden Miller is in his lone season with the Colonels after transferring in from Arkansas and has made his mark since day one. Miller leads the Colonels with 15.5 points, 10.7 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per game. His dominating inside presence has helped CovCath to a 22-5 record and in the hunt for a 9th Region title. His efficiency from the field is near tops in the state, hitting 67% of his shots from the field, good for ninth in the Bluegrass. Miller has scored over 1,000 points in his high school career.
Nathan Vinson leads the Bluebirds in scoring with 18 points per game and rebounding, pulling down 5.6 rebounds per game. He has scored more than 1,000 points over the past two seasons. His relentless pursuit to attack the rim makes him a tough cover on any given night. In the game he cleared the 1,000 point marker against Lloyd Memorial, Vinson scored 42 points.
Quinn Eubank has been with the varsity team at Ryle since seventh grade, a part of the 2019 state championship team. In her career to date, she’s scored 1,764 points and pulled down 1,294 rebounds, the program’s career rebounds leader along ranking in the career top 10 in every major statistical category of the program. She’s been a double-double threat in scoring and rebounding since she was a freshman. She’s averaging a double-double this season with team-highs of 16.4 points and 10 rebounds per game. She also averaged a double-double her freshman season. Eubank has been honored with numerous awards and all-star selections, including all-Northern Kentucky and all-9th Region. She is a 2024 McDonald’s All-American nominee. She’s heading to Belmont University.
Julia Hunt is an imposing threat along the interior as her numbers show with over 1,800 points, 1,300 rebounds and is the all-time leader in the 9th Region with over 600 blocked shots. Hunt has led Holy Cross to back-to-back All “A” Classic state championships and was named tournament MVP both times, adding to a long list of awards including all-Northern Kentucky and all-9th Region honors. She’s averaging 13.7 points, 8.1 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per game this season and leads the team in those categories for the third year in a row. While her talents are shown on the basketball court, she’s a standout volleyball player as well and will play at the University of Washington.
Browning has led the turnaround at Boone County as they went from 5-20 in 2022-23 to 18-8 currently. The 18 wins are the most the program has achieved since the 2014-15 season when they went 20-12. He’s in his fifth season with the team as they look for their first 9th Region tournament berth since 2015.
Arlinghaus has guided Holy Cross to a 25-5 record and a second straight All “A” state title. They ended the regular season on a 13-game winning streak and have won 18 of 19 to close out the regular season. They seek their first 35th District championship since 2017 and first 9th Region title since 2015. In his fourth season with the team, Arlinghaus has led Holy Cross to a 88-36 record.
The Mr. and Miss Kentucky Basketball honor recognizes the top high school male and female senior basketball player in the state. The winner along with coach of the year will be announced at the Mr. and Miss Kentucky Basketball Awards Ceremony March 17 at the Griffin Gate Marriott Resort in Lexington. The full award winners around the state are pictured below.
