Some years it is almost a forgone conclusion when it comes to who will be hoisting a regional championship trophy and making the trip to compete in a Sweet 16 state championship tournament. This is definitely not one of those years.
In this special section we will primarily be taking a look at upcoming district tournament competition, but with this column I want to zoom out just a little further and consider some of the possibilities for who could find themselves competing for a 13th Region crown at the Corbin Arena early next month.
First, let’s take a look at the boys’ side of things…
If I had to give my top picks right now, the list would probably look like: Harlan County, Bell County, South Laurel, North Laurel, Corbin and Clay County (in no particular order).
I think that it will for sure be Harlan County battling Bell County for this year’s 52nd District title, and that one promises to be a classic.
I didn’t include any teams from the 51st District in my list above, but Knox Central is almost guaranteed to find themselves going up against either Barbourville or Pineville in the 2025 tournament finals. The Mountain Lions should, in my opinion, be the other team to make it to the Arena out of this district, but the Tigers could very well come out on top, especially considering the fact that they will have home court advantage next week.
The outcome of the 50th District tournament is also difficult to predict right now. The safe bet is that Corbin and South Laurel will once again meet up in the championship game, but don’t count out the Whitley County Colonels, who picked up a regular season victory over the Redhounds at Corbin on Feb. 4. The Hounds were without top scorer Ryder Akins on this night, but still, this was a huge victory for Whitley that proved they cannot be overlooked.
Finally, consider North Laurel and Clay County a lock to make it out of the 49th District.
On the girls’ side, my top picks would include: North Laurel, South Laurel, Knox Central, Corbin, Bell County and Whitley County (in no particular order).
Bell and Harlan Independent should be the two teams competing for this year’s 52nd District championship, and in the 51st District it will almost certainly be Knox Central meeting up with Pineville.
South Laurel is currently the favorite to come out on top of the 50th District, but the big question is will they face Corbin or Whitley County in the championship? The Lady Hounds went into Charles M. Lawson Gymnasium on Jan. 21 and picked up a 47-40 victory, but the Lady Colonels got revenge on Feb. 4 when they came to Corbin and walked away with a 73-57 win. The rubber match between these two squads will be one to watch, for sure.
As for the 49th District, it’s pretty much North Laurel and everyone else right now.
So, there you have it. I can’t say with any level of certainty who will be left standing when all is said and done next month, but it is shaping up to be one of the more interesting and exciting regional tournaments in recent history. This is good news for hoops fans who enjoy watching great competition.
