JARED MACDONALDStanding at 6-foot-5, Justin Becker is hard to miss on the basketball court.Especially considering he hasn’t even had his first day as a high school student yet.The rising freshman at Robertson County has been hitting the hardwood and drawing attention on the summer circuit, after helping the Black Devils find success as a middle schooler. Robertson County’s Justin Becker looks to make a pass during a game against Pendleton County, Tuesday, Jan. 2, in Falmouth.“This kid is a gym rat,” said Robertson County coach Patrick Kelsch. “He’s played with Royal Legends, he’s played with Team RC, he plays with the high school team – he’s probably played 40, 50 games this summer and we probably have 10 more.”Royal Legends – now called SBA Hoops, according to Becker – is based out of Mason County and coached by former University of Pikeville player Adam Reed. The team has traveled to places like Louisville and Lexington to face top competition.“It helps a lot actually.
Playing against good players like Brady Dingess – I played with him – it just gets me prepared for what’s going to happen when I play better people.”Dingess is considered one of the top players in his class in the state. He averaged 19 points per game as an eighth grader with Sheldon Clark last season. They were both at the Coast 2 Coast Preps and Camp One 2018 Midwest Spotlight in Cincinnati this past weekend.Becker drew attention from several youth basketball promotional websites, including Next Up Recruits and Coast 2 Coast Preps. He was one of five players named to the Coast 2 Coast Preps Class of 2022 All Camp Team.
The organization had a post Monday on their Twitter account, which has over 15,000 followers, with the following statement regarding Becker:“Very impressed with 2022 Justin Becker this weekend at the Midwest Spotlight. Runs the floor, rebounds well makes great outlet passes full court, can score at rim with great footwork and nice jumper. He is 6’4 now, if he gets to 6’8-9 will be a High major PF.”While only just finishing up his eighth grade season, the exposure from playing at these events has helped get his name out to college coaches that are hoping to see him live. He’s listed sixth on the Kentucky Class of 2022 watch list on bigshots.net, which has a Twitter following of close to 30,000 people. He’s also listed on the watch list for Next Up Recruits and is 12 th in the KySports.TV Kentucky Class of 2022 rankings.“I’m not going to mention any names, but they’ve asked where he’s going to be at this summer. They don’t necessarily want game film from seventh grade. They want to see him live,” said Kelsch.
Baker Drawer
“The good thing is he’s only a freshman and they already know his name.“I’ll be honest – without putting anyone down, I’d like to see 11 other eighth graders as good as Justin,” added Kelsch.With his height, Becker would typically be playing in the post at the high school level, but has shown the skills to also play on the perimeter, according to Kelsch. He averaged 9.6 points and 4.2 rebounds on last year’s Robertson County team that won 20 games.Becker says he’s been working on a variety of things to help his game this summer.“I’ve been working on really everything – defense, getting faster, my pull up jumper, my ball handling, passing,” said Becker. “I’ve been doing drills in practices, getting up and down the floor in scrimmages, but really mostly doing drills like cone drills.”Another thing that helps is who he sees in practice with the Black Devils.Seven of the other 11 players listed on Robertson County’s roster at the end of last season were 6-foot or taller. That included Alex Schalch, a 6-foot-4 sophomore that averaged 16.3 points and 7.2 rebounds last year, and his brother, Ross Becker, a 6-foot-3 sophomore that averaged 7.6 points and six rebounds per game. Robertson County’s Justin Becker drives to the basket against Augusta’s Stephen Cordle, Tuesday, Nov.
28, 2017, in Mount Olivet.“I say on a daily basis that those three should thank each other and shake hands after every practice,” said Kelsch. “Very rarely will they go against big guys as good as that.”Becker appeared in 16 varsity contests during his seventh grade season. He averaged 1.9 points and two rebounds per game, numbers significantly less than during his eighth grade year.“Justin’s grown leaps and bounds from his seventh to eighth grade year. His seventh grade year he was on the varsity floor because I knew he had the skill set to be there,” said Kelsch. “Against juniors and seniors he might not have had the same strength or quickness, but he’s gotten so much stronger.”The strength is something Kelsch says they’re continuing to work on. The Black Devils are going to be starting a weight training program to improve strength and quickness.His height is something that could change, too. Becker is 6-foot-5 now and has been told he’ll likely get even taller.“They say I’m supposed to,” said Becker.
December 07, 2019SATURDAY, DECEMBER 7KENTUCKYBOYS BASKETBALLBracken County at Pendleton County, 8 p.m.St. Patrick at Williamstown, 7:30 p.m.BGO Classic at Lexington Christian AcademySayre vs Augusta, 1 p.m.EKC Tournament at Lewis CountyMorgan County at Lewis County, 8 p.m.Kentucky Bank Classic at ParisMason County vs Frankfort, 4:15 p.m.GIRLS BASKETBALLBurgin at Augusta, 3:30 p.m.St.
Patrick at Sayre, 2 p.m.Lady Royals Showcase at Mason CountyBracken County vs Western Hills, 12 p.m.Frederick Douglass at Mason County, 2 p.m.Franklin County vs Fleming County, 6 p.m.EKC Tournament at Lewis CountyMorgan County at Lewis County, 6 p.m.OHIOBOYS BASKETBALLPortsmouth Clay at Manchester, 7:30 p.m.Paint Valley at Peebles, 6 p.m.Eastern Brown at Ripley, 7:30 p.m.GIRLS BASKETBALLPortsmouth Clay at Manchester, 4:30 p.m.Southeastern at Peebles, 1 p.m.Miami Trace at Eastern Brown, 1:30 p.m. December 07, 2019AUGUSTA – A lot of emotions were shown Friday night in Augusta when Bracken County and Augusta renewed their rivalry on the hardwood after a near four-year hiatus.In the end it was Augusta’s Kason Hinson fighting back tears of joy as he and his Panther teammates got the upper-hand on the Polar Bears, 94-86 in the shootout down by the river.A season ago, Hinson and his father were on the other side, Jason Hinson coaching Bracken while Kason Hinson had a successful freshman year. On Friday, it looked like another practice with the Polar Bears for the Panthers sophomore, pouring in 39 points and guiding his team to the victory.“Obviously I’ve got some former teammates over there, former school, I put all into this game and gave everything I had,” Kason Hinson said. “It kind of felt like practice from last year, the same people kind of guarding me.
It feels great right now, very emotional, especially to win this one with my dad.”Much like Hinson, Blake Reed was on the other side last season, playing for Augusta as a seventh grader and putting together a breakout season. He too looked like he was having a practice with his old teammates, pouring in 44 points in defeat.“Two really good players and we get to see that for the next three years. Blake is a special player and one of those kids that has a knack for scoring,” Polar Bears coach Adam Reed said, Blake’s father.
“He has to understand when he’s driving and they can’t stop him, why settle? Just drive, kickget people involved. He has to get guys involved, he can score 40 and we lose or get four others guy and score 20 and we win. He knows that and that’s a process we’re looking forward to working on.”The coaches son’s put on a show in a highly-anticipated game that had a lot of chatter for months, but the positive at the end of the day, no technicals, no hard fouls, no extracurricular activitiyjust good, clean basketball.“Coach Reed is not going to let that stuff happen, I’m not going to let it happen. I give Coach Reed a lot of credit, he controlled his guys, we controlled our guys.
Good old-fashioned basketball and that’s the way it should be. We’re glad to be playing these guys again,” Jason Hinson said.“This is family. As you can see here, Bracken County people, Augusta people, we’re cousins, brothers, uncles, aunts, sistersit’s a family atmosphere. Do people at Bracken County want to beat Augusta? And the other way around. That’s why this is a rivalry and why the energy was so good in here.
It was clean. It was super clean,” Reed said.The big difference in the contest was rebounding and free throw shooting. The Panthers held a 37-24 rebounding edge on the night while hitting 28-of-31 free throw attempts, the Polar Bears hitting 17-of-29 attempts.“We’ve really worked hard on our free throws.
December 07, 2019LEWIS COUNTY 69, MASON COUNTY 68For the first time in school history, Lewis County earned three straight wins over Mason County after their 69-68 victory over the Royals Friday night in Vanceburg.The Royals had a furious rally coming back from a 19-point deficit in the third quarter, but came up a point short as the final horn sounded.Alex Schalch had a big night for Mason County, scoring 32 points. Xylon Frey added 13 in the losing effort.Lewis County was paced by Sam O’Keefe, scoring 19 points and adding 10 rebounds. Tanner Willis also had double figures with 15 points as the Lions are now 1-1 on the season. They’ll look to move to 2-1 when they host Morgan County on Saturday in the EKC Quarterfinals at 8 p.m.Mason County looks to rebound on Saturday when they play Frankfort at Paris in the Kentucky Bank Classic at 4:15 p.m.MASON COUNTY 61, EAST CARTER 49 (GIRLS)Emma Taylor posted 22 points and nine rebounds as the Lady Royals got their first win of the season in a 61-49 win over East Carter to open up the Lady Royals Showcase at the Mason County Fieldhouse.Rachel Payne added 14 points as the Lady Royals jumped out to a 31-22 halftime advantage. Mason County shot 51 percent from the field on the night to maintain the separation.Mason County hosts Frederick Douglass in the second game of the Lady Royals Showcase on Saturday at The Fieldhouse at 2 p.m.SAINT PATRICK 61, BURGIN 41 (BOYS)The Saints already have more wins than all of last year after a 61-41 victory over Burgin Friday night in Vanceburg.Despite being shorthanded and down to seven eligible players, St.
Patrick used Jaylan Rigdon’s big night as he poured in 30 points, Chase Walton adding a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds. December 07, 2019The Eastern Kentucky Conference Basketball Tournament will get going on Saturday.There will be three boys’ and girls’ contests at host sites before semifinals and championship play shifts to Rowan County next week.Lewis County will host Morgan County in a boy-girl doubleheader starting with the girls’ game at 6 p.m. And the boys’ game to follow. The winner of these contests will get Rowan County on Tuesday in the semifinals, the Vikings getting a bye for being the host site on the top half of the bracket.On the bottom half of the bracket, Bath County will host East Carter in a boy-girl doubleheader with the girls’ game beginning at 6 p.m. And the boys’ game to follow.The final quarterfinal matchup pits West Carter hosting Russell in a boy-girl doubleheader, girls’ game first at 6 p.m.The winners of those two quarterfinal matchups will meet in Monday’s semifinals in a boy-girl doubleheader, girls’ game starting at 6 p.m.Championship games will take place on Thursday, starting with the girls’ game at 6 p.m.
And the boys’ game to follow at 8 p.m.Rowan County swept both titles last season.The tournament has been running since around the mid 1980’s, EKC commissioner Gary Kidwell said. December 07, 2019BELFRY 30, BELL COUNTY 20In a matchup of the two winningest coaches in KHSAA history, it was the one with the most adding another to his tally as Belfry topped Bell County, 30-20 Friday evening at Kroger Field in Lexington.The Pirates entered the game with a potent rushing attack and were able to establish it once again as they totaled 379 rushing yards in the victory and earned their seventh state championship in program history.Bell County came into the contest undefeated and were within striking distance at the half, trailing 17-12. December 06, 2019Six games over the next two days will take place at the Mason County Fieldhouse for the Lady Royals Showcase.Two games on Friday will be followed by four games on Saturday for the inagural event.Mason County (0-1) will kick off the Showcase against East Carter (1-0) on Friday night at 6 p.m. Bath County (1-1) and Dayton (0-2) follow at 8 p.m.Saturday’s slate features Bracken County (0-2) and Western Hills (0-0) tipping off at noon followed by Mason County taking on Frederick Douglass (1-1) at 2 p.m.Fairview (1-0) and Dayton will play at 4 p.m. With Fleming County (2-0) taking on reigning 41st District Champion Franklin County (0-0) at 6 p.m.
To close out the Showcase.The Showcase started this year as the Lady Royals have been part of the Mike Murphy Classic the past few years, the Murphy taking place next weekend with all boys’ teams participating.Local teams Mason County and Bracken County will be in search of their first wins of the season, the Lady Royals dropping their season opener at Paris on Tuesday. The Lady Bears have lost to Beechwood and Nicholas County out of the gate as coach Taylor Alstatt also looks for his first win as a varsity head coach.Fleming County will try to get to 3-0 after wins over Elliott County on Monday and Harrison County on Thursday.
Sidney Argo and Krishani Jackson have helped lead the way to the hot start for the Lady Panthers, combining for 76 points in their first two games. December 06, 2019It’s down to the final 12 teams in the state of Kentucky as six classes will battle it out for state titles over the next three days at Kroger Field in Lexington.Friday’s matchups feature the Class 1A and 3A championships, Saturday has the 2A, 4A and 5A games while Sunday’s finale is the 6A title game. Plenty of Division I and other college level talent will be on display throughout the weekend in Lexington.Here’s a brief look at each matchup with my score prediction:CLASS 1A CHAMPIONSHIP, Paintsville (11-3) vs Pikeville (13-0), Friday, 2 p.m.These two Eastern Kentucky powers met in the third game of the season in what many would call a backyard brawl, Pikeville escaping in Paintsville, 9-8.
A total of 275 yards were gained between the two in the first matchup as the defenses rose to the occasion. That was the Panthers closest call to the smell of defeat, running the table to date with a 13-0 record. The Panthers have done a lot of it with theor defense, allowing a Class A best 11.8 points per game. Pikeville will be looking for their fifth state championship while Paintsville is looking for their first, having lost in two state title games in 1978 and 1985.PREDICTION: Pikeville 19, Paintsville 8CLASS 3A CHAMPIONSHIP, Bell County (14-0) vs Belfry (10-3), Friday, 7 p.m.The two winningest coaches in KHSAA history will face off in the nightcap on Friday. Belfry’s Philip Haywood owns 448 wins, Bell County’s Dudley Hilton with 393 wins, 48 more wins than any other coach in KHSAA history.
Alan Becker Draw My Life
The Bobcats enter undefeated, beating everyone in sight by at least 14 points in their 14 games so far. The question begs has any of them been up to the level of competition that Belfry presents? The Pirates have lost three games this season, but two of those losses are to teams also playing for a state title this weekend in Pikeville and Johnson Central. The other loss was to Archbishop Alter out of Ohio. Bell County’s offense has been nearly unstoppable all season, averaging 44.5 points per game led by QB London Stephney and a potent rushing attack. Speaking of rushing attacks, Belfry churns out 338.6 yards per game.PREDICTION: Belfry 36, Bell County 30CLASS 2A CHAMPIONSHIP, Mayfield (13-1) vs Somerset (13-1), Saturday, 1 p.m.Having lost the last two state championship games, Mayfield will enter this one hungry in their search for their 13th state championship in school history. Meanwhile, Somerset is still looking for the program’s first-ever state title, having lost their five previous trips to the state title game.
Mayfield lost their fourth game of the season and have pretty much rolled since, scoring at least 35 points in every game and averaging 45.8 points per game this season. The Briar Jumpers are a point off from a perfect season, their lone loss to Lexington Christian back on October 18. They also feature a prolific offense, averaging 40.8 points per game. Both teams have gunslingers at QB, Mayfield’s Jayden Stinson throwing for 3,506 yards and 48 touchdowns, Somerset’s Kaiya Sheron throwing for 3,043 yards and 27 touchdowns.PREDICTION: Mayfield 47, Somerset 36CLASS 4A CHAMPIONSHIP, Boyle County (14-0) vs Johnson Central (14-0), Saturday, 4:30 p.m.One of two games that feature two undefeated teams takes place in Saturday’s second game as Boyle County and Johnson Central meet. This will be Johnson Central’s fifth straight state title game, having gone 1-3 in the prior four. Boyle County has had a ton of success in state championships, going 8-1 in their prior nine trips.
Boyle County has been a machine all season, pretty much destroying anyone in their way all season. They’ve won their 14 games by an average of 41.2 points per game, their closest contest being last week in a semifinal win over Central, 31-14. Johnson Central has been nearly as dominant, winning by an average of 37.2 points per game. This matchup should be a doozy.PREDICTION: Boyle County 41, Johnson Central 30CLASS 5A CHAMPIONSHIP, Covington Catholic (14-0) vs Frederick Douglass (14-0), Saturday, 8 p.m.The second battle of undefeatededs takes place in the final of three games on Saturday when Covington Catholic and Frederick Douglass meet.
If you like defense, this game is for you. Cov Cath has allowed more than 10 points just once in a game this season. The Colonels have pitched six shutouts this season and allow 6.07 points per game. Frederick Douglass is even stingier, pitching nine shutouts and allowing 6.0 points per game. I’d say both coaches looked at the Lexington Catholic tape, the Knights basically the only team to have success against the two. Cov Cath beat Lex Cath 39-38 on September 6, Frederick Douglass beat Lex Cath 42-31 on November 1.
Knights QB and University of Kentucky signee Beau Allen may have had a little bit to do with that as well.PREDICTION: Covington Catholic 14, Frederick Douglass 13CLASS 6A CHAMPIONSHIP, Male (14-0) vs Trinity (12-2), Sunday, 2 p.m.The final state title matchup is one that will be highly anticipated in the Louisville area. Male was able to knock off Trinity in a double-overtime thriller back on September 20 and Sunday’s contest figures to be another classic. These two programs own the last five state championships in 6A, Male owning the 2015 and ‘18 state titles, Trinity in 2014, ‘16 and ‘17. In the first meeting, Male WR Izayah Cummings was a big factor, hauling in six passes for 145 yards and two touchdowns. Cummings is headed to play on the very same field next year for UK. Trinity’s Armon Tucker had success in the ground game, going for 108 yards in the contest.
Male missed three field goals in the first matchup despite being able to come out victorious, so that could play a factor in Sunday’s contest.PREDICTION: Male 20, Trinity 14Want to go? Single-game tickets are available for purchase online at: championship game will be webcast live at KHSAA.tv for subscribers to the NFHS Network (Subscription plans for the NFHS Network are available for $10.99 a month. A monthly subscription, priced less than the cost of admission to a state championship event, entitles users to every broadcast by the KHSAA and the 45 participating state associations.A free audio-only feed of the games will also be available online through Mixlr (which has a corresponding app available for iOS and Android devices. In addition, live stats for each game will be available on the Football page at KHSAA.org. December 06, 2019(All times Eastern)Schedule subject to change and/or blackoutsFriday, December 6COLLEGE BASKETBALL (MEN’S)6:30 p.m.FS1 — Iowa at Michigan7 p.m.ESPN2 — Providence at Rhode Island9 p.m.ESPN2 — Southern California at Texas ChristianCOLLEGE FOOTBALL8 p.m.ABC — Pac-12 Championship: Utah vs.
Oregon, Santa Clara, Calif.COLLEGE HOCKEY (MEN’S)8 p.m.BTN — Minnesota at Ohio State8:30 p.m.FS1 — Penn State at MichiganCOLLEGE SOCCER (WOMEN’S)7 p.m.ESPNU — NCAA Tournament: Washington State vs. North Carolina, Semifinal, San Jose, Calif.9:30 p.m.ESPNU — NCAA Tournament: UCLA vs.
Stanford, Semifinal, San Jose, Calif.FIGURE SKATING9 p.m.NBCSN — ISU: Grand Prix Final, Men’s and Ladie’s Short Programs, Turin, Italy (taped)GOLF3:30 a.m.GOLF — EPGA Tour: The AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open, Second Round, Bel-Ombre, Mauritius11 a.m.GOLF — PGA Tour: The Hero World Challenge, Third Round, New Providence, Bahamas5 p.m.GOLF — Father/Son Challenge: Pro-Am, Orlando, Fla. (taped)8 p.m.GOLF — ISPS Handa PGA Tour of Australasia: The Emirates Australian Open, Third Round, Sydney2:30 a.m. (Saturday)GOLF — EPGA Tour: The AfrAsia Bank Mauritius Open, Third Round, Bel-Ombre, MauritiusNBA BASKETBALL8 p.m.ESPN — Denver at Boston10:30 p.m.ESPN — LA Lakers at PortlandSKIING12:30 p.m.NBCSN — FIS: World Cup, Xfinity Birds of Prey, Men’s Super G, Beaver Creek, Colo.11 p.m.NBCSN — FIS: World Cup, Women’s Downhill, Lake Louise, Alberta (taped)SOCCER (MEN’S)2:20 p.m.FS2 — Bundesliga: Hertha Berlin at FrankfurtSWIMMING7 p.m.NBCSN — U.S. Open: Day 1 Finals, Atlanta.
.HACKETTSTOWN, N.J. – Freshman scored her first collegiate goal as the Centenary University women's lacrosse team fell to Becker College in the season opener for both squads Thursday afternoon.The Hawks jumped out to a 13-0 halftime lead and claimed an 18-2 win over the Cyclones.Cassandra Nelson had three goals and Arianna Calouro added two goals and an assist to help the Hawks jump out to the 13-0 halftime advantage.The Cyclones struck first in the second half as Doyle scored on a free position shot at 28:40.Becker scored another goal before senior scored her first goal of the season for the Cyclones at 20:08. Soriero's goal also came on a free position shot.Becker scored the final four goals of the game to secure the 18-2 win.Nikolle Storey made four saves to earn the win in goal for the Hawks. Senior finished with 15 saves for the Cyclones.Nelson led Becker with four goals, two ground balls and two draw controls while Calouro finished with two goals and two assists.In addition to her goal, Doyle contributed three ground balls and two draw controls. Soriero added two ground balls and five draw controls. Junior led the defensive efforts with three ground balls and two caused turnovers.The Cyclones are back in action on Saturday, March 16 when they host Sweet Briar at 3 p.m.