[Allcity33]

Final

[64SUR]

Wow!!

[Old School Hound]

North is the clear favorite in the 13th but about any of six or seven others could beat one another on a given night. Corbin went to Knox on Wednesday and beat the Panthers .

[nedreader]

Wow!!

What are the odds on Gray being the coach at Clay next year(seriously)?  They lose at least 4 senior starters so the cupboard is definitely getting bare.  How low will the program go?

[Old School Hound]

Corbin went to Knox Wednesday and beat the Panthers by five.  The margin would have been eight, minus a near half court shot at the final buzzer by Central. Then Clay gets shellacked in the same house two nights later.  Just says how wide open and crazy the post-season could be in the 13th region.  North is the clear favorite but everyone else is pretty even. And on any given night Harlan Co. , South, Knox, Corbin, or Clay could put a scare into the Jags. The Hounds took them to the wire in London a couple of weeks ago.

[Van Hagar]

Better not leave Harlan Ind. out of that conversation, they smacked Harlan Co. by 24 this week, and Akal might be second best player in the region.

[Old School Hound]

Better not leave Harlan Ind. out of that conversation, they smacked Harlan Co. by 24 this week, and Akal might be second best player in the region.

Yes, you're right. Honestly, I had missed hearing of the Harlan Co. pasting until you mentioned it. I had lost some confidence in the Green Dragons after the loss to Lynn Camp and one-point win over Barbourville. I've regained some confidence(lol). Btw, what in the hell is up with the Black Bears?
Also, don't forget about Lynn Camp. They've beaten Harlan by three and loss to them by five.

[Van Hagar]

Yeah the Harlan Co. question is a good one. Maybe HCS could give us some insight, they have really hit a rough stretch here lately after starting the season so strong.

[64SUR]

Wow!!

What are the odds on Gray being the coach at Clay next year(seriously)?  They lose at least 4 senior starters so the cupboard is definitely getting bare.  How low will the program go?

Just my opinion ZERO %

[eky.sports.fan]

I was really impressed with Knox Co in the WYMT tourney. They have a really nice team

[Corbin]

I’m fully convinced that the 13th region is drunk this year. Corbin loses to clay, beats Knox, plays NL to the end, swept by south. Knox wins the classic, loses to Corbin, kills Clay. Harlan loses to Lynn Camp but destroys Harlan County. It’s North and then 5 or 6 teams who could win or lose to any of the other 5 or 6 by 20 points either way. North isn’t invincible but is the clear favorite. It’s just going to be who gets hot.

[Old School Hound]

I’m fully convinced that the 13th region is drunk this year. Corbin loses to clay, beats Knox, plays NL to the end, swept by south. Knox wins the classic, loses to Corbin, kills Clay. Harlan loses to Lynn Camp but destroys Harlan County. It’s North and then 5 or 6 teams who could win or lose to any of the other 5 or 6 by 20 points either way. North isn’t invincible but is the clear favorite. It’s just going to be who gets hot.

Truth.  Some of the results have left me shaking my head. Hard to explain, other than a lot of parity outside of North. And even with North, there are five or six teams that can hang with them if everything falls into place and they get a few breaks.

[Allcity33]

I watched this one, Knox completely had their way with Clay. On offense they got anything they wanted, on defense they crowded Robinson and didn’t let Farmer and Abner shoot open 3’s. Unlike when they played Corbin and got up 15 they didn’t relax and take their foot off the gas. In my opinion North is the big time favorite with Knox and South right behind them.

---

I watched this one, Knox completely had their way with Clay. On offense they got anything they wanted, on defense they crowded Robinson and didn’t let Farmer and Abner shoot open 3’s. Unlike when they played Corbin and got up 15 they didn’t relax and take their foot off the gas. In my opinion North is the big time favorite with Knox and South right behind them.

Edit- meant to add Corbin/Harlan/HC/Clay as teams behind North.

[Huggy_Bear]

From an outsider with no affiliation to a 13th region team, it seems as if everyone is jockeying for 2nd place behind North Laurel. I understand anything can happen in HS basketball but I just don’t see any 13th region team knocking off NL. I know they had a couple of “close” games with Corbin and South but they also just beat South by 15 at the their place. Anything can obviously happen in HS basketball though so you never really know.

[HCS]

Harlan County blew out some good teams in a 12-1 start by hitting a great percentage from the 3-point line. The Bears missed all 17 3-point attempts through three quarters against Harlan. Plus, Harlan sat out three weeks during a quarantine and had been up and down since returning last week. They looked pretty good, especially in the second half. I had Harlan ranked sixth in the preseason, so I think they have been a contender all along.

[Waynes_]

Wow!!

What are the odds on Gray being the coach at Clay next year(seriously)?  They lose at least 4 senior starters so the cupboard is definitely getting bare.  How low will the program go?

The super, chairman and coach has destroyed the boys’ basketball program.  Sad! Very sad!

[Oldtiger]

In Clay one must bend the knee or you're out, it all falls on the leadership. 100%

[Old School Hound]

I've followed these Clay kids for three or four years now. I remember going to a Corbin-Clay game three or four years ago in Manchester (I think Connor was a freshman) and Clay had something like thirteen kids that were either a freshman or sophomore. While a lot of them were pretty green, I thought they were very talented and had a huge upside. I remember telling a Clay fan at the game that I thought they would have two or three regional titles banked by the time those kids were seniors. Instead, they were a first round exit in 2017 and , I believe, missed the region in '18 and '19. Those results just don't match up to what I expected when I saw these kids a few years ago.  Someone help me out.

[Waynes_]

I've followed these Clay kids for three or four years now. I remember going to a Corbin-Clay game three or four years ago in Manchester (I think Connor was a freshman) and Clay had something like thirteen kids that were either a freshman or sophomore. While a lot of them were pretty green, I thought they were very talented and had a huge upside. I remember telling a Clay fan at the game that I thought they would have two or three regional titles banked by the time those kids were seniors. Instead, they were a first round exit in 2017 and , I believe, missed the region in '18 and '19. Those results just don't match up to what I expected when I saw these kids a few years ago.  Someone help me out.

I thought the same thing.  It was a special group for sure.  It boils down to small town politics.  Hired one of their own, instead of a coach.  The last few years have been a disaster.  A true underachievement.  Clay has had a few quit, few transfer, and the rest is there.  Bad player development and lack of preparation and knowledge.  I say that as when I watch this year, some kids look lost and they look miserable out there playing.  I like to think clay has a chance this year, but they will fail again.  Gray just can’t get it done as a coach.  A player feeds off of their coach and gray is a nervous wreck in the post season.  And more bad news, after this year the program will be so bad for so long it may never recovery.  Gray had no intentions of developing the program and keeping its rich tradition, he just tried to ride the coat tails of his good players to win a region, but players must have leadership and a coach to direct them.  Clay doesn’t have that sad to say.

[Old School Hound]

I've followed these Clay kids for three or four years now. I remember going to a Corbin-Clay game three or four years ago in Manchester (I think Connor was a freshman) and Clay had something like thirteen kids that were either a freshman or sophomore. While a lot of them were pretty green, I thought they were very talented and had a huge upside. I remember telling a Clay fan at the game that I thought they would have two or three regional titles banked by the time those kids were seniors. Instead, they were a first round exit in 2017 and , I believe, missed the region in '18 and '19. Those results just don't match up to what I expected when I saw these kids a few years ago.  Someone help me out.

I thought the same thing.  It was a special group for sure.  It boils down to small town politics.  Hired one of their own, instead of a coach.  The last few years have been a disaster.  A true underachievement.  Clay has had a few quit, few transfer, and the rest is there.  Bad player development and lack of preparation and knowledge.  I say that as when I watch this year, some kids look lost and they look miserable out there playing.  I like to think clay has a chance this year, but they will fail again.  Gray just can’t get it done as a coach.  A player feeds off of their coach and gray is a nervous wreck in the post season.  And more bad news, after this year the program will be so bad for so long it may never recovery.  Gray had no intentions of developing the program and keeping its rich tradition, he just tried to ride the coat tails of his good players to win a region, but players must have leadership and a coach to direct them.  Clay doesn’t have that sad to say.

Thanks for the info. I appreciate it.  Not to take anything away from their present coach because I am not  close enough to the situation to judge,  but I was thinking a couple of years ago if someone like Pietrowski was coach of that group of kids for three or four years the sky would be the limit. I think he would have had them doing big things at Rupp. Just my opinion. I was really impressed with the talent when they were freshmen and sophomores. Apparently, it just didn't develop as I thought it should have.

[HCS]

I thought the expectations were way too high. I don't see a lineup full of college prospects.
They made it to the semifinals last year and pushed Harlan County to the limit. They could have won the region with a break or two. I think they lost to a good North team in the district the previous year.

[nedreader]

They have plenty of talent now and have had enough for at least one regional title over the last 3-4 years if not two regional titles. There is a clear lack of leadership on the sidelines and even more clearly a lack of player development. People can make up excuses for one year but you can't use an excuse every year. Clay used to be feared now they play with fear...especially in the post season and that is a direct reflection of their coach. For those that will blame the kids and their lack of desire, etc, etc,...shame on you.

[Old School Hound]

They have plenty of talent now and have had enough for at least one regional title over the last 3-4 years if not two regional titles.  There is a clear lack of leadership on the sidelines and even more clearly a lack of player development.  People can make up excuses for one year but you can't use an excuse every year.  Clay used to be feared now they play with fear...especially in the post season and that is a direct reflection of their coach.  For those that will blame the kids and their lack of desire, etc, etc,...shame on you.

I can attest to the fact that I, as well as most fans of 13th region basketball have tremendous respect for the rich basketball tradition at Clay Co. You can't start talking about 13th region history without starting with Clay.  Having said that, I think what you said is true. The fear factor, when it comes to Clay , has dissipated over the years. Back in the seventies and eighties, when you played Clay, you were beaten before you took the court. You fully expected to lose. It's not that way now. You know when you tussle with the Tigers, especially in Manchester, that, while it's going to be tough task, you believe you can win. In fact, for most the top programs, I think they go into a game with Clay expecting to win.  That is such a change from a couple or three decades ago. I don't believe the talent pool has suddenly dried up at Clay. I'm in the camp that thinks there must be other issues, though I am going to leave that for my Clay Co. friends to opine on. They would know much more than I would.

I just know that Clay has only missed advancing to the region tournament three times in over 70 years and two of those times were in 2018 and 2019. That stat alone says that maybe something is amiss in Manchester. But what do I know?