KENTUCKY PREP REPORT
by Larry Kihnley, Kentucky Editor of the HOOP SCOOP
Published on June 28, 2005

Editor's Note:  Larry Kihnley's list of the top 60 seniors, 40 juniors, 38 sophomores, 22 freshmen, seven 8th graders, two 7th graders, and one 6th grader can be found by clicking below on Kihnley Ranks Em:  The Top High School Players in Kentucky.

 GOOD TEAMS MORE THAN MAKE UP FOR LACK OF HIGH MAJOR TALENT IN THE STATE OF KENTUCKY
by Larry Kihnley, Kentucky Editor of the HOOP SCOOP and assistant basketball coach at Pleasure Ridge Park High School in Louisville, KY

                    The 2004-2005 basketball has come and gone, but, in a season that was supposed to be less than spectacular due to the state's lack of overall of big time talent, the opposite happened.  Much like college basketball, where the top high school players have been jumping to the professional ranks, the lack of super talent brought about parity.  There were no Lexington Catholic's or Mason County's, as has been the case the past couple of years.  Instead, there was a log jam at the top with teams like Trinity, Ballard, Jeffersontown, Pleasure Ridge Park, Scott County, Pendleton County, and South Laurel.  And teams, like Warren Central, University Heights, Bullitt East, and DeSales, that were supposed to be in middle of the pack also put together excellent seasons.  This made for an exciting finish to what some have called one of the best state tournament's in recent memory.  For the record, we came out looking pretty good on our pre-season picks.  South Laurel claimed the state title by downing a surprising Warren Central in the state final and Pleasure Ridge Park's 6'0 JaJuan Spillman put on an incredible performance in the post season and, as a result, edges out 5'11 Dominic Tilford from Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY, who was recently was named the state's Mr. Basketball, for the #2 spot in our rankings of the top graduating seniors in the state. 
                    South Laurel will again be our pick as the state's top team to start next season.  This is due to the fact that head coach Steve Wright will be returning state tournament MVP Walt Allen, a 6'5 wide body; 6'3 Soph Ty Proffitt, who is the #1-ranked sophomore in the state; 6'5 Soph Jordan Hammonds, who is an excellent shooter; and 6'8 Soph Trey Smith, who may end up being the team's top prospect.  In other words, this team not only is loaded, but it also could make a three-year run at the state title.  As for Spillman, he began the season slowly due to his outstanding play on the football field.  But once the rust wore off, he just flat out took over.  In leading Pleasure Ridge Park to a 31-6 record and the state Final Four, he hit the game winning shot at the buzzer to beat DeSales in the regional finals.  He also canned two free throws in the last seconds of his team's overtime win against Pendleton County in the first round of the state tournament and nailed another shot at the buzzer to beat Ballard in double overtime in the quarterfinals.  And he almost did it again against South Laurel, as he stripped one of the Cardinals and hit a lay-up with 16 seconds left to give Pleasure Ridge Park a one-point lead in double-overtime.  However, Allen came right back and scored with six seconds left to give South Laurel a point win, as well as the opportunity to advance into the title game.  The kid is total winner.  He also has the speed and quickness to play at a high level, if he chose to play basketball over football, which is the sport that he signed a National Letter-of-Intent to play at the University of Louisville.
Our post season Player-of-the-Year - 7'2 Jared Carter from Georgetown (Scott County) KY - also wins our award for the most improved player in the state.  We previously had Carter ranked among our top five players in the class, but, after working some long hours with former Georgetown College assistant coach Keith Griesser, the 7'2 big man with great shot blocking ability, excellent hands, and soft touch, was able to pick Kentucky over schools like North Carolina, Georgia Tech, Cincinnati, and Illinois.  This says a lot about both Carter and Griesser. 
                    While we're talking about coaches, there were some outstanding jobs turned in this season.  Mike Szabo at Trinity claimed the state's coach-of-the-year honors and justly so.  We continue to hear how he has "done it at a football school" due to the Shamrocks outstanding success on the gridiron.  But let's call a spade a spade.  The guy can just flat out coach!  Any coach can win with talent.  They may not win the region or state title, but they will win.  A great coach can get it done anywhere and Szabo would win at any level.  His team held the state's top ranking most of the year en route to a 29-4 record.  The Rocks also were the runner-up in the King of the Bluegrass and they were the champions in both the L.I.T. (Louisville Invitational Tournament) and the Fifth-Third Classic in Lexington, KY.  Our hat goes off to a few other coaches as well.  First, Jeff Morrow at Jeffersontown.  When Morrow took over the program they were nowhere on the basketball map in the state.  This season Morrow guided Jeffersontown to a 29-5 season, the King of the Bluegrass title, and runner-up finishes in the L.I.T. and the Seventh Region.  Chris Renner of Ballard (29-3) deserves a huge pat on the back, as his team was in the toughest region in the state with both Trinity and Jeffersontown, as well as Manual (24-7).  And his Bruins went undefeated in the region and beat all three of these teams to advance into the state tournament.  Dale Mabrey of Pleasure Park Park also did an outstanding job again this season.  Some people had written the Panthers, which were ranked #1 in the state pre-season, off after starting the season with an 8-4 record.  But Mabrey's rallied his team to win 23 of their next 25 games to become the only Louisville team to win 30 games this season.  Mabrey's team also won two games in the state tournament to give him the all time record for Sweet Sixteen wins at 20.  Interestingly, Szabo, Morrow, and Renner's jobs just got tougher, because Tom Crews has moved from DeSales in the Sixth Region to Male High School in the Seventh Region.  Crews guided DeSales to a 25-6 record this past season and to three runner-up finishes in the region in his six seasons at the school. 
                    On the player side, some players in the senior class who stepped up this season, other than Spillman and Carter, were 5'11 Dominic Tilford from Jeffersontown (H.S.) KY, 6'6 Wilbert Reeves from Louisville (Ballard) KY, 6'5 5'11 Aaron Cash from Mt. Vernon (Rockcastle County) KY, 6'8 Keaton Belcher from Falmouth (Pendleton County) KY, and the Sexton twins (Kyle and Brett) from Louisville (Trinity) KY.  Tilford was the driving force behind Morrow's building project at Jeffersontown.  He carried his team offensively in his first few years at Jeffersontown and his teammates gained valuable experience, as they transformed themselves from just being competitive into contenders.  Reeves just took over in the later stage of the season.  When we saw him in December, we felt like he was a player without a position, as he seemed uncomfortable inside and unsure of himself outside.  This changed as the season wore on, as he showed the ability to hit the outside shot and dominate inside with quick moves and a soft touch.  He became Ballard's "go to" man down the stretch and placed his named among the state's top five players.  Cash was pretty much it for his high school team.  His ability to score at the high school level was never a question, as was the case with his tremendous savvy.  Yet he displayed the skills to run the show in all-star games once he was surrounded with better players.  Belcher signed early with Belmont and they may have gotten the steal in this year's senior class.  We're talking about a 6'8 forward who can mix it up inside, yet can shoot the three and is athletic enough to dunk on you.  He needs weight, but Belcher could be a star at this level in college.  The Sexton twins are a throw back to the days of savvy and skills.  They are not great athletes, but they are so fundamentally sound and know the game so well that they rarely make a mistake and take advantage of all the mistakes the their defenders make.  Lack of height and athleticism caused most Division I schools to take a pass, but like Belcher in the Atlantic Sun Conference, the Sexton twins should star at Georgetown College at the NAIA level.  
                    The state's junior class took a major hit as the only high Division I player - 6'10 Jr Albert Jackson from Madisonville (Hopkins County Central) KY - decided to enroll at Mouth of Wilson (Oak Hill) VA this fall.  He also already has verbally committed to the University of Georgia and the step up in competition could do wonders for his game, as he is strong and athletic, but needs to hone his fundamentals to be a factor at the high Division I level.  So now the best big man in this class will be Walt Allen from London (South Laurel) KY.  After guiding his team to the state title this season, Allen also placed himself as the front runner for Mr. Basketball honors in the Class of 2006.  The problem is that he is a 6'5 power forward who is not very athletic.  His game is build totally around a baby hook shot, soft touch, and extreme knowledge of the game.  Allen does posses deep range and uses his body well inside, but when faced with bigger and more athletic players like he will face at the Division I level, he may struggle.  But Allen has proven people wrong before and, if he finds the right team at the OVC level, he could be a solid contributor.  The best "prospect" in the class for next season could be 5'11 Jr Josh Mack from Hopkinsville (University Heights) KY.  He is small, but, just like Tilford was this past season, he has explosive speed and quickness and is a pure point guard.  6'2 Jr Aaron Dunaway from Lexington (Henry Clay) KY is a player who could jump to the top of the list, because he will have every opportunity to up his 18.0 ppg average next season in his team's up tempo setting.  Pleasure Ridge Park's 6'5 Jr Vincent Crutcher had a very strong junior year, as he played inside for his high school team, but also has shown the range and excellent passing skills necessary to play out on the wing at the next level. 
                    As we mentioned earlier, South Laurel has another player at the top of the Class of 2007 in 6'3 Soph Ty Proffitt.  He is a heady lead guard who knows how to make his teammates better, but also is a reliable scorer when he needs to be.  In fact, South Laurel has three players in the top 10 of this class, as 6'5 Soph Jordan Hammonds and 6'8 Soph Trey Smith promise to be two of the best players in state for the next two years.  This is why Wright's team will be so strong.