We skipped a week because there wasn’t many games the prior week due to the winter weather, but the LINK nky Top 10 is back.
Shew, this is not easy and that shows how much parity there is in Northern Kentucky this year.
The marquee matchup this week is when Covington Catholic travels to Union to take on Cooper on Wednesday. All I know is this, for the boys teams in NKY, you better bring your lunch pail and hard hat every game because every team ranked below, 1-13, is capable of beating anyone on any given night.
It may not stretch that far on the girls side, but the top 10 teams are certainly capable of beating one another on any given night.
Here is the weekly edition of the LINK nky Top 10 below:
BOYS
- Covington Catholic (13-2, Previous Ranking: 1) — The Colonels will take an eight-game winning streak into a busy four-game week this week that will be sure to test them which includes Cooper, Trinity and Centerville (Ohio).
2. Cooper (7-4, Previous Ranking: 3) — The Jaguars are now full go and that’s a scary thought for the rest of the region. Wednesday’s matchup with the Colonels could create a new No. 1 next week.
3. Lloyd Memorial (11-5, Previous Ranking: 2) — Shortcomings late against Covington Catholic and Cooper will sting, but definitely things to learn and grow from.
4. Campbell County (12-3, Previous Ranking: 4) — A solid test at Conner on Tuesday looms. The Camels are the clear No. 2 in the 10th Region at the moment.
5. Conner (11-4, Previous Ranking: 6) — Friday’s matchup at Ryle is huge. They win that, then they set themselves up for a chance at the No. 1 seed for the 33rd District Tournament, just needing to beat Cooper on Feb. 4.
6. Beechwood (11-5, Previous Ranking: NR) — With their run through the All “A”, the Tigers make the biggest jump in the rankings from unranked to No. 6. Now can they go do some damage at the All “A” state tournament in Owensboro? They start with pretty much the home team Owensboro Catholic on Thursday.
7. Newport (9-7, Previous Ranking: 5) — The Wildcats need some continuity, but with recent injuries to Adonaje and Amontae Lowe, it’s hard to do. Maybe by February they’ll have all hands on deck and in a groove.
8. Dixie Heights (11-3, Previous Ranking: NR) — One of the hottest teams in NKY right now with seven straight victories. Now we just need to see it against any of the teams ranked above them here. They’ll have a chance to do so on Jan. 28 at Lloyd Memorial.
9. Holy Cross (10-4, Previous Ranking: 7) — The good news in the loss to Beechwood in the All “A” is that it didn’t count as a district game, so the Indians hopes of getting a No. 1 seed in the 35th District tournament is still alive. The bad news? It’s the third straight loss to the Tigers and a team they’ll most likely need to get past in the first round of the district tournament.
10. Simon Kenton (11-5, Previous Ranking: 8) — The Pioneers have won nine of 10 and we’ll really get to see where they stand against the top 10 here and beyond over the next few weeks. They have contests with Lloyd (Jan. 21), Ryle (Jan. 28), Walton-Verona (Jan. 31), Campbell County (Feb. 4) and Highlands (Feb. 18).
Next up: Highlands, Ryle, Walton-Verona
GIRLS
- Holy Cross (18-1, Previous Ranking: 1) — They get a chance to defend their back-to-back All “A” state titles this week. The first round matchup will be a must watch with Bethlehem on Wednesday at 10 a.m. CST.
2. Cooper (9-3, Previous Ranking: 2) — They own one of the best resumes in the state with wins over Highlands, Franklin-Simpson and Anderson County. The lone losses are to Sacred Heart, Purcell-Marian (Ohio) and Holy Cross.
3. Simon Kenton (12-3, Previous Ranking: 4) — Their three losses are to No. 2 George Rogers Clark, No. 5 North Laurel and No. 6 Franklin-Simpson. Two of those losses are three-point losses to North Laurel and Franklin-Simpson.
4. Highlands (13-4, Previous Ranking: 3) — Highlands currently sits at 6-1 in region play, the lone loss to Cooper with wins over Holy Cross and Dixie Heights.
5. Notre Dame (9-3, Previous Ranking: 5) — After playing a lot of out of region opponents early on, they’ll get to test themselves against local competition over the final half of the season.
6. Dixie Heights (8-4, Previous Ranking: 6) — Had an assistant coach tell me, “This is the most dangerous team in the region.” So there’s that. They have a pair of tight losses to Highlands (68-64) and Notre Dame (60-58), and a win over Notre Dame. Holy Cross (Jan. 30) and Cooper (Feb. 13) on the horizon.
7. Campbell County (10-3, Previous Ranking: 7) — They are the clear No. 2 in the 10th Region. Problem is, George Rogers Clark is No. 1. Scott on Jan. 28 is a little over a week away.
8. Bishop Brossart (12-4, Previous Ranking: 8) — Have a real opportunity to at least make the semis in the All “A” state tournament this week where the potential for a NKY semifinal matchup could happen. If Holy Cross and Brossart both win their first two games, they’d see each other in Saturday’s semis for the third time this season, Holy Cross winning the first two games by a combined four points.
9. Scott (9-6, Previous Ranking: 9) — Freshman Nakiah Mejia and Noelle Price are going to be a problem in the backcourt for years to come.
10. Walton-Verona (12-5, Previous Ranking: 10) — They’ll head to the All “A” state tournament with a matchup against Danville Christian in the opening round and face off with Louisville signee Grace Mbugua.
Next up: Newport Central Catholic, Ryle