By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Winners of the 9th Region boys’ and girls’ basketball tournaments in Northern Kentucky will both play the 3rd Region champion in the opening round of state tournament competition next month.
Two separate blind draws that took place Wednesday determined the opening-round pairings for the St. Elizabeth Healthcare/KHSAA girls’ state tournament March 8-12 at BB&T Arena in Highland Heights and the Whitaker Bank/KHSAA boys’ state tournament March 15-19 at Rupp Arena in Lexington.
Drawing the same regions to face each other in both tournaments doesn’t happen very often, but that’s how it turned out for the local teams. The top contenders for the 9th Region titles according to the Courier Journal Litkenhous Ratings are the Covington Catholic boys and Holmes girls. In the 3rd Region, the top-ranked teams are the Owensboro Catholic boys and Grayson County girls.
CovCath remained the No. 1 boys’ team in the state in the LIT Ratings this week. The Colonels have a 21-4 record with only one loss to an in-state opponent.
Holmes was No. 9 in the latest girls’ state ratings. The Bulldogs won last year’s 9th Region title and have an 18-3 record this season with their losses coming to downstate opponents.
Simon Kenton is the top girls’ team in the 8th Region. If the Pioneers win the title, they’ll face the winner of the 15th Region that has Johnson Central, Shelby Valley and Paintsville as leading contenders.
Campbell County is the top-rated boys’ team in the 10th Region. If the Camels come out on top, they’ll face the 13th Region champion that will likely be Knox Central, Corbin or South Laurel.
Here are the first-round pairings for both state tournaments with the top three teams in each region according to the LIT Ratings, a computerized system based on strength of schedule and margin of victory against in-state opponents. Game times will be determined at a later date.
ST. ELIZABETH HEALTHCARE/KHSAA GIRLS STATE TOURNAMENT
(March 8-12 at BB&T Arena in Highland Heights)
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 8
REGION 7 (Louisville Male, Sacred Heart, Manual) vs. REGION 6 (Louisville Butler, Mercy, Bullitt East)
REGION 1 (Murray, Marshall County, Graves County) vs. REGION 5 (Elizabethtown, Nelson County, John Hardin)
REGION 10 (Mason County, Clark County, Campbell County) vs. REGION 13 (Harlan County, South Laurel, Clay County)
REGION 16 (Boyd County, East Carter, Russell) vs. REGION 12 (Mercer County, Lincoln County, Pulaski Southwestern)
THURSDAY, MARCH 9
REGION 4 (Monroe County, South Warren, Russell County) vs. REGION 11 (Franklin County, Scott County, Lafayette)
REGION 8 (Simon Kenton, Anderson County, Trimble County) vs. REGION 15 (Johnson Central, Shelby Valley, Paintsville)
REGION 9 (Holmes, Highlands, Conner) vs. REGION 3 (Grayson County, Owensboro Catholic, Apollo)
REGION 2 (Henderson County, Hopkinsville, Webster County) vs. REGION 14 (Leslie County, Perry Central, Knott Central)
WHITAKER BANK/KHSAA BOYS STATE TOURNAMENT
(March 15-19 at Rupp Arena in Lexington)
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15
REGION 11 (Scott County, Dunbar, Lexington Catholic) vs. REGION 12 (Pulaski Southwestern, Pulaski County, Mercer County)
REGION 4 (Bowling Green, Franklin-Simpson, Russellville) vs. REGION 1 (Graves County, Paducah Tilghman, Marshall County)
REGION 10 (Campbell County, Paris, Scott) vs. REGION 13 (Knox Central, Corbin, South Laurel)
REGION 15 (Johnson Central, Sheldon Clark, Pikeville) vs. REGION 14 (Perry Central, Knox Central, Cordia)
THURSDAY, MARCH 16
REGION 16 (Boyd County, Elliott County, Greenup County) vs. REGION 8 (Oldham County, South Oldham, Simon Kenton)
REGION 9 (Covington Catholic, Cooper, Dixie Heights) vs. REGION 3 (Owensboro Catholic, Apollo, Daviess County)
REGION 7 (Louisville Trinity, Ballard, Waggener) vs. REGION 5 (North Hardin, Adair County, John Hardin)
REGION 6 (Fern Creek, Bullitt East, Pleasure Ridge Park) vs. REGION 2 (Hopkinsville, Christian County, University Heights)