High school hoops don’t stop over the holidays, in fact, they get even busier.
In the latest edition of basketball bites, we look at some milestones, program records, college standouts and freshman tournaments on the horizon.
Next week will be a week off from basketball bites due to some vacation time, but we’ll be back up and running January 6!
Code gets 100th win
Dixie Heights boys basketball coach Scott Code got his 100th career win when the Colonels took down Conner last week.
He won 21 games last year in his first season with Dixie, the Conner win was his fifth of the season this year. Prior to that, Code led Campbell County from 2007-10 and Bishop Brossart from 2020-22. He’s been a longtime assistant as well at Lloyd Memorial, Highlands, Brossart, Thomas More and was an assistant twice at Dixie, once under Scott Draud and most recently under Chad Fields.
Campbell County celebrates 25-year anniversary of region hoops title with old coach in town
When Dan Sullivan brought his Ludlow team to Claryville for a matchup with Campbell County, it also brought back a flood of memories as the Camels honored their 2001 region championship team that was coached by Sullivan.
The team was recognized as alumni came in for the game. It broke a 41-year region title drought when they won the 10th Region title. Since then, the Camels have claimed five region titles, most recently in 2023.
Abby Holtman playing well for Mercer
Ryle grad Abby Holtman transferred from University of Cincinnati to Mercer and the junior is playing well for the Bears.
Holtman took home Most Valuable Player honors in Mercer’s championship victory of the Tulane Holiday Tournament, pouring in 27 points in the title game win over Tulane. The 27 points was a career-high for Holtman in college as she’s now scored in double figures in four of 10 games for the Bears and averaging 10.4 points per game. She’s knocking down 40% of her 3-point attempts (24/60) on the season.
Unfortunate news for Evan Ipsaro
With Miami (Ohio) off to its best start in program history at 13-0, it comes with some tough news as leading scorer Evan Ipsaro will be out for the season with a torn ACL.
Ipsaro got injured in the Redhawks victory over Ball State on Saturday and the torn ACL was confirmed on Sunday. He’s scheduled to have surgery on Tuesday and should be back by the start of the 2026-27 season. In Ipsaro’s first 11 games with the Redhawks, he was averaging a team high 13.9 points per game on 57% shooting from the field.
Still undefeated
And then there were five…after three weeks of the regular season, just five Northern Kentucky teams remain undefeated. They are the Holy Cross boys (9-0), Beechwood boys (7-0), Highlands boys (6-0), Bishop Brossart girls (9-0) and Simon Kenton girls (10-0).
NewCath with a pair of last second winners
The Newport Central Catholic girls basketball team had two last second shot victories last week in wins over Conner (54-53) and Trimble County (56-55).
Crosley Geisler hit the game-winning 3-pointer in the win over Conner while Brooklyn Cole hit the game-winning layup in the win over Trimble County.
The victories improved NewCath to 4-3, a promising start for a team that lost four starters to graduation.
Todd Houston Memorial Freshman tournament
The Todd Houston Memorial Freshman boys tournament gets underway on Saturday at Holy Cross. The bracket is shown above.
Dye sets 3-point record at Beechwood
Beechwood freshman Averi Dye set a program record for 3-pointers in a game with nine in the Lady Tigers 74-34 victory over Holmes on Friday.
Dye went 9-for-12 from beyond the arc.
10th Region tourney to be at Mason County
With the 37th District’s turn to host the boys 10th Region tournament, they selected the Mason County Fieldhouse to be the host this year, according to Scott Athletic Director Casey Fisk. When it was the 37th District’s turn in 2020, they chose the David Evans Fieldhouse at Holmes.
Stay Hot Podcast, Episode 4
Check out the latest edition of the Stay Hot Podcast. We spoke with Highlands boys basketball coach Kevin Listerman.
