Due to Christmas and a ton of games being played Sunday and Monday, the weekly basketball column moved to Friday this week, same goes for next week with the New Year holiday.
In the latest edition of basketball bites, we take a look at some more milestones, the marquee holiday tournaments taking place, a hot start for a local college team and more.
Here is the weekly rundown:
Eaglin hits 2k
Newport Central Catholic senior Caroline Eaglin hit the 2,000-point mark for her high school career on Dec. 26, in NewCath’s game with Gatlinburg-Pittman out of Tennessee.
Eaglin has signed with Northern Kentucky University to continue her academic and playing career on the hardwood next year. Eaglin has led the region in scoring each of the past two seasons and is currently at 21.6 points per game through NewCath’s first eight games with stats posted. She also leads the team in rebounds with 7.2 per game.
The Thoroughbreds are 5-5 and will finish out the weekend in Gatlinburg for their holiday tournament.
Lorms, Mann hit 1k
Ryle’s Landon Lorms and Newport Central Catholic’s Ian Mann both hit the 1,000-point career milestones on Dec. 17 as the two squared off, Ryle taking down NewCath 80-57.
Lorms posted 17 points and eight rebounds in the victory. Ryle is currently 3-4 as Lorms works his way back into basketball shape after a run to the state championship game with the football team as the Raiders top receiving option.
Mann put up 21 points in the loss to the Raiders as he hit all nine of his free throw attempts and 6-of-11 shots from the field. The Thoroughbreds are 4-4 on the season. They head to Bloomington, Indiana for a Christmas tournament.
King of the Bluegrass
After losing their opening round matchups, Lloyd Memorial and Newport made a run all the way through the consolation bracket to meet in the consolation championship of the King of the Bluegrass basketball tournament played at Fairdale High School in Louisville.
Lloyd Memorial lost to St. Xavier in the opening round, most likely the No. 1 team in the state right now and then followed it up with victories over Ashland, Male and Newport, all preseason ranked teams headed into the season. It improved the Juggernauts to 7-1 on the season. EJ Walker and Anthony Blaackar were named to the All-Tournament team. Lloyd heads east to Ashland to play in the Ashland Invitational Tournament, taking on last year’s state runner-up Harlan County in the first round.
Newport was defeated by Bryan Station in the opening round and then defeated Mater Academy (FL) and Adair County to reach the consolation final before losing to Lloyd in the only matchup between the two this season. James Turner was named to the All-Tournament team. They start the White, Greer and Maggard Holiday Classic on Friday at Lexington Catholic, taking on DuPont Manual in the first round.
Cooper is Queens once again
For the second straight year, Cooper is the Queen of the Commonwealth champion.
The Lady Jaguars won four games in four days to claim the title with victories over DuPont Manual, Southwestern, Daviess County and Franklin-Simpson. Zene Thompson, Haylee Noel and Addyson Brissey were named to the All-Tournament team.
It improved Cooper to 6-1 on the season as they’ll face Purcell-Marian (Ohio) on Dec. 28 in their next time out on the court. It’s a stretch of two straight games where they’ll play a state champion from Ohio (Purcell) and then host Sacred Heart, the four-time reigning champ in Kentucky on Jan. 3.
Simon Kenton and Notre Dame also posted solid showings at the QOC, going 3-1. Simon Kenton defeated Bethlehem and Butler in the first two rounds before losing to Franklin-Simpson in the semifinals and then defeating Daviess County in the third place game. Notre Dame opened with a win over Ballard before losing to Franklin-Simpson in the second round. The Pandas followed it up with victories over Butler and Southwestern for fifth place.
Scott Winter Classic
Scott, Holy Cross, Cooper, Conner and Simon Kenton all converged down at Scott High School in Taylor Mill for the Scott Winter Classic, the majority playing three games in three days from Dec. 21-23.
Conner came away 3-0 from the action, posting three wide margin victories over Whitehall (Ohio), Mason County and Withrow (Ohio) by a combined 80 points to win their fifth straight and improve to 6-3 on the season. They now head to Louisville, playing in Eastern’s Middletown Holiday Classic and opening up with the host Eastern on Dec. 27.
Cooper also left unscathed, winning both their matchups over Northridge (Ohio) 67-49 and Holy Cross 58-43 as they improved to 4-1 and head to the White, Greer and Maggard Holiday Classic in Lexington on Dec. 27, opening with Frederick Douglass.
Holy Cross went 2-1 in three days of action with wins over Simon Kenton 59-48, Holy Cross (Louisville) 62-48 and a loss to Cooper, 58-43. The Indians are 5-2 and head to Eastern in Louisville for the City of Middletown Holiday Classic Dec. 27-29, opening up with Atherton.
Simon Kenton also went 2-1 in the three days, after the opening day loss to Holy Cross, they bounced back with wins over Northridge 81-55 and Holy Cross (Louisville) 75-37 to improve to 4-4 on the season. They head to the Central Bank Jim Rose Classic at Lexington Christian Academy, opening up with Christian County on Dec. 27.
Scott finished 1-2, defeating Iroquois 75-55 on the first day and then following it up with losses to Withrow 74-71 and Springboro 73-23. It dropped them to 3-6, but followed it up with a win over Menifee County on Dec. 26 at Bellevue’s Mike Swauger Holiday Classic. They’ll now face Ludlow on Dec. 27.
Thomas More off to solid start
The Thomas More University men’s basketball team is off to an 8-3 start to the 2024-25 season. They’ve won three in a row and currently sit at 3-1 in the GMAC conference and in fourth.
They’re still a year away from being eligible for the Division II National Tournament, but can still participate in the GMAC Conference Tournament.
They return to action on Jan. 2 in a home matchup with Walsh University.
The Saints are led by Casey George’s 15.5 points per game while Jack McCune and Kai Simpson are also hitting double figures at 14.8 and 10.5 points per game, respectively.
McCune was named G-Mac Athlete of the Week on Dec. 23 after a week in which he posted 25 points, 5.5 rebounds, 1.5 blocks, 1.5 steals, and one assist on the Saints 2-0 week.
Covington Catholic grad Mitchell Rylee, St. Henry grad Wyatt Vieth and Cooper grad JaShaun Pouncy are all playing vital roles in the Saints hot start. Rylee is posting 7.6 points and 6.5 rebounds per game while shooting 70% from the field, Vieth is at 7.5 points per game and Pouncy is shooting 57% from the field, playing about 10 minutes per game as a true freshman.
Augsback’s connecting from deep
Siblings from Campbell County had a solid showing from the perimeter in recent games. Camels senior Jayden Augsback knocked down five 3-pointers in the Camels 82-72 victory over Johnson Central on Dec. 22
Younger sister Kendall Augsback also hit five 3-pointers in the girls team 64-23 victory over Hazard on Dec. 22. Kendall is a freshman on the team.
The two are a combined 33-of-68 from the 3-point line this season, hitting from deep at nearly a 50% clip.
Holiday tourneys/classics/invites continue
As you can see above, plenty of action will be on the hardwood throughout the weekend.
For the boys, the Ashland Invitational Tournament will have Lloyd Memorial, Highlands and Walton-Verona in it.
Simon Kenton is in the Central Bank Jim Rose Classic at LCA.
Holy Cross and Conner are in the City of Middletown Holiday Classic at Eastern.
Campbell County is in the Mason County Invitational Tournament.
Newport and Cooper are in the White, Greer and Maggard Holiday Tournament at Lexington Catholic.
Covington Catholic is down in Florida for the Riverview Ran Jam Christmas Tournament at Riverview HS in Sarasota.
Newport Central Catholic is in Bloomington, Indiana.
Beechwood is in Orlando, Florida for the KSA Events Holiday Basketball Tournament.
Ludlow, Scott, Boone County and Bellevue are all in the Mike Swauger Holiday Tournament at Bellevue.
For the girls: Dayton, Villa Madonna and Newport are playing in the Lady Demon Classic at Williamstown.
Boone County and Ludlow are playing in the Pam Browning Classic at Carroll County.
Bellevue and Newport Central Catholic are in Tennessee.
Walton-Verona is in the Firstbank Holiday Bash at South Warren.
St. Henry is at the Kelly Holiday Classic at Bourbon County.
Highlands and Scott are playing in the Lady Invitational of the South at Allen County-Scottsville.
I’m missing a few others, but some of the holiday hoops schedules aren’t up to date on the KHSAA website.