[kywldcat01]

A few thoughts/notes from the game:

Clark Co:

- The Cards only played their top 7 in the first half but in the second half Fatkin, Skinner, and #34 saw a few minutes too.

- Stenzel had a very nice game offensively, doing it all. He slashes very well and showed a nice stroke from outside and a very good mid range game. Stenzel also had a nice two hand dunk on a break away over a Holmes defender.

- Jaylen Daniel also impressed me from Clark Co. He scored 6 straight at one point in the second half to bring GRC back from a 29-21 deficit. He rebounded well and was very aggressive around the rim.

- Zollo struggled defensively guarding Pittman, but offensively had a nice game and showed a nice stroke from outside for his size. He was who got the Cards going early when they were struggling shooting the ball. He got several offensive rebounds and putbacks, as did Purvis.

- Speaking of Purvis, he has a nice touch from outside and is every bit of 6'8. He rebounds very well and is aggressive around the rim when he has the ball.

- Corey Rogers struggled some, but that's to be expected as he is just getting back from football.

Overall, I was impressed with Clark Co. They have a very solid ball club and are a legit top 5 teams. They're every bit of what they've been hyped to be in the preseason.

Holmes:

- Ricardo Johnson hurt his ankle early in the first period and didn't play the rest of the game. He was in the locker room until right before halftime when he walked back out to sit on the bench but had a slight limp. Not having him in the lineup really hurt the Dogs as nobody could guard Stenzel and they had to use smaller kids on him.

- Elijah Pittman was a man among boys tonight on the offensive end. He had 4 or 5 dunks, including one over Zollo and another over Purvis...posterized versions. Also had several offensive rebounds that led to dunks. Struggled a bit from outside but he was the leader for the Dogs tonight. If he plays like he did tonight, I don't see anyone stopping him. He has gotten considerably bigger since last year and I think he's bigger than the 6'8 that he's listed at. Standing next to Zollo, he looked to be slightly bigger.

- Jeremiah Johnson had a quiet, solid game. He hit the boards hard at both ends of the floor but needs to become more aggressive on the offensive end. He is good enough to take over a game but is too unselfish too.

- Avery is going to be very valuable to the Dogs this year. He played 3 different positions and played almost the whole game. His defense needs to improve but offensively he provides a nice outside threat for the Dogs.

- Holmes used the following starting lineup: Pittman, Avery, R. Johnson, J. Johnson, and Slusher. Not sure why, but Rice didn't start for the Dogs. Holmes used 10 different players. Outside of the starting 5, they also used Mayfield, Hayes, Mcclendon, Herndon, and Rice. I'd expect Henley to use a 8 or 9 man rotation this year without much of a dropoff. When Holmes built the 29-21 lead in the second half, the Dogs had Mayfield, Hayes, Mcclendon, Pittman, and Rice out on the floor. The smaller, quicker lineup really gave the Cards fits.

- Holmes needs to improve at the defensive end but that should be improved by the start of the season. Holmes lost to Tates Creek last year in their first scrimmage by a similar score and ended up beating the Commodores by 26 two weeks later when they played in the regular season.

Overall, Holmes needs to improve in certain areas but I wouldn't look too much in to this scrimmage considering they used a consistent 10 man rotation and played practically the whole game without state tournament MVP, Ricardo Johnson.

I expect both teams to have great seasons this year and to be at Rupp Arena come March.