Who are Kentucky’s top 25 boys high school basketball teams for 2023-24?
Lyon County has Kentucky high school basketball’s all-time leading scorer in University of Kentucky commit Travis Perry, and, according to the Herald-Leader’s preseason survey of coaches, many count the Lyons as this season’s No. 1 team.
The Lyons, the 2nd Region champions who reached their second-ever Boys Sweet 16 last year and made it to the quarterfinals, edged out the 11th Region’s Great Crossing as this year’s preseason favorite in our Herald-Leader top 25.
“We return about 98 percent of our scoring from last season’s team,” Lyon County head coach Ryan Perry said. “We pretty much know what we are going to get night in and night out with our upperclassmen but our younger guys have really turned the corner in this offseason, and I am extremely excited about how much better they are going to make our team.”
Lyon garnered 28 No. 1 votes to Great Crossing’s 25, but there was a wide array of other favorites among the 109 high school head coaches who voted in our survey. Of the top 10 teams in our poll, Trinity and defending Boys Sweet 16 champion Warren Central each received 13 top nods, Newport got nine, Bowling Green five, Male and Frederick Douglass four, Covington Catholic three and Evangel Christian one.
Great Crossing features 7-foot-1 junior center Malachi Moreno who is surrounded by a group of fellow juniors who have been playing varsity basketball together for some time. They’ll face a challenge in the 11th Region from several challengers, most notably No. 5 Frederick Douglass, the defending region champion, who brings back a lot of experience from last season’s state semifinals team.
Here’s a look at this year’s Herald-Leader High School Boys’ Basketball Preseason Top 25 as voted on by the state’s coaches with a brief summary of what we know about the top 10 teams and a note about each of the next 15.
THE TOP 10
(Last season’s record in parenthesis)
1. Lyon County (31-6): In addition to Perry, the Lyons return fellow seniors and double-digit scorers Brady Shoulders (17.9 ppg, 11.1 rpg) and Jack Reddick (18.8 ppg), meaning Lyon County is far more than a one-man show. The Lyons will be tested early at the Marshall County Hoopfest and Lexington Catholic’s holiday tournament in addition to touching on a bit of history when they face Floyd Central on Dec. 16 at Wayland Gymnasium, the home gym of King Kelly Coleman, whose record Perry surpassed last season.
2. Great Crossing (28-6): The Warhawks’ core of juniors Malachi Moreno, Vince Dawson, Gage Richardson and Junius Burrell along with senior Jeremiah Godfrey has seen its last two seasons end in the 11th Region semis against more experienced and consistent teams. Now, they have experience, they’re working on consistency and depth, and the sky could be the only limit. A tough schedule includes the King of the Bluegrass Tournament, Covington Catholic, Ashland Blazer and George Rogers Clark.
3. Trinity (Louisville) (24-8): The ‘Rocks are led by senior guard Drae Vasser (13.5 ppg), junior transfer Julius Edmonds (11.6 ppg at Western) and sophomore Jayden Johnson (10.6 ppg). Trinity just missed out on last year’s Sweet 16, losing a double-overtime thriller against Male in the 7th Region championship.
4. Male (26-11): Seven of the Bulldogs’ top nine, including three starters, return from last season’s 7th Region champs. Cole Edelen (15.9 ppg), Jayson Gasaway (10.6 ppg) and Max Gainey (5.5 ppg) lead the way. “We can really shoot the ball and could be a great defensive team,” Male coach Timothy Haworth said. “This group can make a deep run in March if we stay healthy.”
5. Frederick Douglass (33-3): The Broncos maintain the speed and athleticism that took them to the school’s first 11th Region title and state semifinals appearance last season. Returning starters Armelo Boone (16 ppg), Aveion Chenault (13.2 ppg) and Logan Busson (5.4 ppg) will be bolstered by Lafayette transfer DeMarcus Surratt (13.8 ppg).
6. Warren Central (36-1): The Dragons graduated four starters off last year’s Boys Sweet 16 champs and will rebuild around Western Kentucky commit Kade Unseld (16.1 ppg) and Bowling Green transfer Elijah Starks (5.1 ppg). Unseld will miss the start of the season as he recovers from surgery to repair a minor knee issue. “We’ve just got to find the right chemistry,” said coach William Unseld. “It’s a new group ... but I think by February, we’ll definitely be top five or 10 in the state.”
7. Bowling Green (26-9): The Purples battled eventual state champion Warren Central to overtime in both the regular season and the 4th Region championship and came out on the wrong end of the latter. Leading scorers MJ Wardlow (16.2 ppg) and Mason Ritter (13.7 ppg), both seniors, return along with quarterback Deuce Bailey (10.8) when he’s done on the gridiron.
8. Newport (28-7): Highly recruited sophomore Taylen Kinney (13.9 ppg) is the defending 9th Region champs’ leading returning scorer with fellow sophomore James Turner (8.5 ppg), a 6-8 center, back in the post where he notched 88 blocks last season. Senior Jabari Covington (12 ppg) returns as well. The Panthers will mix in Taft (Cincinnati) point guard transfer Deshaun Jackson (8 ppg).
9. Evangel Christian (29-5): The defending All “A” Classic champions return four starters, including Christian Doerr (18.5 ppg) and Kyran Tilley (16.1 ppg), but have questions in the post with the graduation of Cyr Malonga, now at East Carolina.
10. Covington Catholic (27-5): The Colonels add Caden Miller, a 6-9 transfer from Arkansas, to the mix to go with experienced guards Brady Hussey (12.5 ppg), a 6-2 senior, and Athens McGillis (4.9 ppg), a 5-11 sophomore and two-year starter. Sophomore point guard Cash Harney (15 ppg) comes over from Beechwood as another weapon.
THE NEXT 15
(With last year’s record and a brief note)
11. Elizabethtown (24-10): The defending 5th Region champions are led by Ohio commit Ayden Evans (16.1 ppg)
12. Mason County (29-6): The Royals picked up brothers Blake (28.6 ppg) and Cayden Reed (16.6 ppg) from Bracken County. Blake Reed has 3,481 career points heading into his senior year.
13. Lexington Catholic (32-3): The Knights’ 6-5 senior point guard Tyler Doyle (10.3 ppg) recently signed with Bellarmine.
14. George Rogers Clark (30-6): The Cardinals return senior shooting guard Reshaun Hampton (11.8 ppg) and add in Paris transfer Malachi Ashford (20.8 ppg), a 5-9 sophomore point guard who was the Greyhounds’ leading scorer.
15. Ballard (26-5): Coach Greg Willis likes the newcomers around lone returning starter Sam Frazier (10.5 ppg). “Really excited about the potential of this group.”
16. Woodford County (22-13): With standout guard Jasper Johnson off to a Missouri prep school, the Yellow Jackets will be led by junior guard Santonio Waide (10.5 ppg), who made impressive contributions in their Sweet 16 run.
17. DeSales (21-12): The Colts add transfers Damone King (16 ppg) and Prince Kahnplaye (28 ppg) from Manual and Community Christian (Paducah), respectively, to a strong lineup that includes Liberty signee Will Gibson (11.6 ppg) and Brady Cummins (13.3 ppg).
18. Harlan County (27-6): Three starters return, including Trent Noah, a 6-7 guard signed with South Carolina, who averaged a double-double last season (26.5 ppg, 12.8 rpg).
19. Ashland Blazer (23-12): The five-time defending 16th Region champs feature junior Liberty commit Zander Carter (22.2 ppg).
20. St. Xavier (18-14): Coach Kevin Klein expects to see the dividends of starting one freshman and three sophomores last season. Jeremiah Jackson, a 6-4 sophomore guard, has already drawn recruiting interest from Cincinnati and others.
21. Butler (23-9): Returnees include seniors and double-digit scorers Dayton Williams (14.4 ppg), a 6-5 forward, and Dontre Russell (10.4 ppg), a 5-10 guard.
22. Manual (21-12): The Crimsons’ leading returning scorers are juniors Justice Decker (10.5 ppg), a 6-6 forward, and Malachi Coleman (10.2 ppg), a 5-11 guard.
23. North Oldham (25-6): The Mustangs graduated most of their offensive production, but have two senior starters back in Grant Neal (8.4 ppg) and Jack Fischer (6.4 ppg).
24. McCracken County (29-6): Coach Dustin Roberts describes his team as talented and hard-nosed, but lacking experience. Senior Connor Miller (8.9 ppg) is the lone returning starter.
25. Corbin (23-8): Four starters return for the Redhounds, including 5-11 point guard Carter Stewart (10.7 ppg).
OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES
(Teams mentioned on at least two ballots In points order)
North Hardin, Washington County, Western, Cooper, Madison Southern, Calloway County, Ohio County, Christian County, Jeffersontown, Madison Central, Pikeville, Taylor County, Boyd County.
METHODOLOGY
Our annual survey was emailed to all 275 boys basketball head coaches using their email registered with the Kentucky High School Athletic Association. Multiple attempts were made to encourage every school to participate. Coaches were asked to select their top 10 teams and points were assigned based on a team’s position on the ballot (10 points for No. 1, nine points for No. 2, eight points for No. 3, etc.) and tabulated across all ballots received. Some schools participated in the survey but declined to vote due to unfamiliarity with players and teams outside of their own area. A total of 109 coaches (39.6 percent) voted in our top-10 teams poll of the 176 coaches (64 percent) who responded to the survey and supplied information about their teams. Thanks to all.
2023-24 SEASON PREVIEW
This is the first of eight stories the Herald-Leader and Kentucky.com is publishing in the coming days previewing the 2023-24 high school boys and girls basketball seasons, which are scheduled to tip off Nov. 27.
Who are Kentucky’s top 25 boys high school basketball players for 2023-24?
