[Westside]

(Team’s 2016-17 record in parentheses)

1. Scott County (31-6): Not only did the Cardinals return 89 percent of their scoring from a season ago, but they added Diablo Stewart, a junior who averaged 18.5 points at Franklin County last year. Kobi Harris, a 6-foot-1 junior, and Jalen Barber, a 6-7 sophomore, also should start seeing more varsity action for the defending 11th Region champion.

2. Trinity (29-4): Starting in 2012 when it won the state title, Trinity has alternated winning the 7th Region with Ballard. If the Shamrocks win this season that pattern will hold, and it will afford them an opportunity to make a better impression than their most-recent state-tournament appearance (a 48-33 defeat to Newport Central Catholic in the first round in 2016).


3. Covington Catholic (29-6): One of the Colonels’ only losses last year was to Cooper, with whom it’s expected to battle for the 9th Region crown again come March. CJ Fredrick, a Mr. Basketball contender who’s signed with Iowa, is the torch-bearer for CovCath but Jake Walters (Xavier) is a steady force in the post.

4. Fern Creek (35-3): Head coach James Schooler said that his team has “tunnel vision to a state title.” The Tigers boast 10 seniors, among them Ahmad Price and Anthony Wales, the former a point guard with Division I athleticism and the latter a Samford signee who will contend for Mr. Basketball recognition.

5. Ballard (29-7): The Bruins’ two leading scorers from last season graduated, but they remain a preseason favorite thanks to four of the next five 2016-17 scorers being part of a senior class that goes seven deep this season. Marshon Ford, also a football standout, led the returnees with 8.4 points and shot 35 percent from three-point territory.

6. Lexington Christian (23-9): LCA’s front court features a Division I signee in Carter Hendricksen (North Florida), a junior who will go Division I in Kyle Rode and senior Austin Hall, who’s headed to Cumberlands next season. The Eagles are one of the biggest teams in the state, an advantage not just in playing for an 11th Region title but also when vying for their first All “A” Classic championship.

7. Cooper (31-5): The Jaguars set the bar high in their first trip to the Sweet Sixteen, where they fell to Bowling Green in a battle of potential first-time champs last season. Gone are three seniors, including Dante Hendrix (now playing football at Indiana State) and Sean McNeil, the Jags’ leading scorer and rebounder.

8. Hopkinsville (28-7): Jalen Johnson, who led the Tigers with 17.7 points as a junior, left the school for Aspire Academy in Louisville but reportedly rejoined the team a few weeks before the season began and is listed on the team’s roster filed with the KHSAA. Assuming Johnson plays, he and Steven “Shorty” Cager (15.9 ppg last year) give Hoptown one of the most entertaining backcourts in the state.

9. Pleasure Ridge Park (18-11): Trey Hill, who’s been offered by Eastern Kentucky University, leads a deep group that lost just two seniors to graduation, but might not have Bryant Robinson, the team’s second-leading scorer from a year ago who in the fall was uncertain he would return to the team because he wanted to focus on earning a football scholarship.

10. Clark County (20-13): The Cardinals won 20 games for the first time since 2011-12 under first-year head coach Josh Cook last season. Cook believes four or more players on this year’s squad could average double-figure scoring; three — Ryan Cooper, Jordan Graham and Will Philpot — did it last season.

Coaches’ next 15: 11. Lexington Catholic (24-9), 12. John Hardin (23-11), 13. Bowling Green (36-2), 14. Corbin (27-6), 15. Adair County (32-2), 16. Pulaski County (27-8), 17. Mercer County (25-8), 18. Madison Central (19-15), 19. Christian County (27-8), 20. Oldham County (26-6), 21. Paul Laurence Dunbar (21-9), 22. Walton-Verona (26-7), 23. Southwestern (24-6), 24. University Heights (13-15), 25. Anderson County (21-12)

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