HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL

BOYS 2^ND REGION:  CHRISTIAN COUNTY WILL BE SEEKING ITS THIRD STRAIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP AFTER THE COLONELS DOWNED HENDERSON COUNTY 80-60 IN SEMIFINAL PLAY LAST NIGHT.

ANTHONY HICKEY SCORED 35 POINTS TO PACE CHRISTIAN COUNTY, WHO HAD FOUR PLAYERS IN DOUBLE FIGURES.  DONOVAN KATES ADDED 16, VEONTAE LEWIS 11 AND MARCOREYON TANDY 10.

HENDERSON COUNTY—WHICH FINISHES THE SEASON 20-6—WAS LED IN SCORING BY ADAM REVLETT WITH 17.

CHRISTIAN COUNTY IMPROVED TO 20-9 WITH THE WIN AND WILL FACE MADISONVILLE IN TONIGHT’S CHAMPIONSHIP GAME.

THE MAROONS EDGED UNION COUNTY IN THE OTHER SEMIFINAL GAME 63-57.  TRAY CARR HAD 15 SECOND HALF POINTS FOR MADISONVILLE, WHO WAS LED IN SCORING BY DENZEL JOHNSON WHO HAD 17.  THE MAROONS IMPROVED TO 17-7 ON THE SEASON WITH THE WIN.

UNION COUNTY GOT 23 POINTS FROM LEVI BROWN AS THE BRAVES ENDED THEIR SEASON 14-14.

COVERAGE OF TONIGHT’S CHAMPIONSHIP GAME BEGINS WITH THE HERITAGE BANK PRE GAME SHOW AT 6:45 FROM TIGER GYM AT HOPKINSVILLE HIGH ON NEWSTALK 95.3 FM/1230 AM WHOP AND WHOPAM.COM.

BETWEEN GAMES LAST NIGHT, THE 2^ND REGION BASKETBALL COACHES ASSOCIATION ANNOUNCED ITS ALL REGION AWARDS.

PLAYERS ON THE TEAM INCLUDED MATT MCGOWAN OF U-H-A, JORDAN MAJORS AND CONNER GATES OF HOPKINSVILLE AND CHRISTIAN COUNTY’S  VEONTAE LEWIS, DONOVAN KATES AND ANTHONY HICKEY, WHO WAS ALSO NAMED 2^ND REGION PLAYER OF THE YEAR.

LYON COUNTY’S JEFF EMBREY WAS NAMED THE 2^ND REGION COACH OF THE YEAR AND LIVINGSTON CENTRAL’S JIMMY CROFT—WHO ANNOUNCED HIS RESIGNATION LAST WEEK—WAS NAMED BY THE 2^ND REGION OFFICIALS ASSOCIATION AS ITS SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD WINNER.

BOYS 1^ST REGION:  MARSHALL COUNTY DEFEATED GRAVES COUNTY 53-44 AND PADUCAH TILGHMAN OVER FULTON COUNTY 68-58.  MARSHALL COUNTY PLAYS PADUCAH TILGHMAN IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME THIS EVENING.

BOYS 4^TH REGION:  BOWLING GREEN EDGED GLASGOW 85-84 AND WARREN CENTRAL DEFEATED MONROE COUNTY 69-60.  THE 14^TH DISTRICT REPRESENTATIVES WILL PLAY IN THE CHAMPIONSHIP GAME THIS EVENING.

BOYS 3^RD REGION:  DAVIESS COUNTY NIPPED MUHLENBERG COUNTY 64-63 TO EARN A TRIP TO RUPP ARENA TO FACE ROWAN COUNTY IN THE FIRST ROUND OF NEXT WEEK’S BOYS SWEET 16.  ROWAN COUNTY DEFEATED ASHLAND 64-58 TO WIN THE 16^TH REGION.  THE TWO TEAMS WILL PLAY NEXT THURSDAY, AT 11 AM LOCAL TIME AT RUPP ARENA.

OTHER TEAMS PUNCHING SWEET 16 TICKETS WERE:  BULLITT EAST IN THE 6^TH REGION, CLARK COUNTY IN THE 10^TH AND LEXINGTON CATHOLIC IN THE 11^TH REGION.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL

WESTERN KENTUCKY’S TEAMS SAW ACTION MONDAY IN THE SUN BELT CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT IN HOT SPRINGS, ARKANSAS.

THE LADY TOPPERS WON THEIR WAY INTO THE FINALS WITH A 55-47 WIN OVER ARKANSAS STATE.  ARNIKA BROWN HAD A DOUBLE/DOUBLE WITH 18 POINTS AND 11 REBOUNDS.  THE LADY TOPPERS FACE ARKANSAS LITTLE ROCK IN THE FINALS THIS AFTERNOON.

MEANWHILE, THE HILLTOPPERS LOST TO NORTH TEXAS IN SEMIFINAL PLAY 81-62.  WKU ENDS THE SEASON WITH A 16-16 RECORD.

KENTUCKY’S BRANDON KNIGHT WON THE S-E-C FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK HONOR FOR THE SIXTH TIME THIS SEASON MONDAY.  KNIGHT—ALONG WITH TENNESSEE’S SCOTTY HOPSON—IS ONE OF FIVE FINALISTS FOR S-E-C PLAYER OF THE YEAR WHICH IS TO BE ANNOUNCED TODAY.

KENTUCKY RETURNS TO ACTION IN THE S-E-C TOURNAMENT FRIDAY AFTERNOON AGAINST EITHER SOUTH CAROLINA OR OLE MISS.  PRE GAME COVERAGE BEGINS AT ONE ON LITE 98.7.

THE LOUISVILLE CARDINALS HAVE A THURSDAY DATE IN THE QUARTERFINAL ROUND OF THE BIG EAST TOURNAMENT, WHICH BEGINS TODAY AT MADISON SQUARE GARDEN IN NEW YORK.

THE KNOXVILLE NEWS SENTINEL REPORTS TENNESSEE CENTER BRIAN WILLIAMS WAS BACK IN PRACTICE MONDAY, AFTER MISSING THE LAST TWO GAMES WITH A BACK INJURY.  WILLIAMS TOLD REPORTERS HE WOULD BE READY TO PLAY WHEN THE VOLS FACE ARKANSAS IN THE S-E-C TOURNAMENT THURSDAY NIGHT.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

AUSTIN PEAY OFFENSIVE LINE COACH STEVE HAYWOOD HAS RESIGNED HIS POSITION TO ACCEPT A HIGH SCHOOL COACHING POSITION AT CHRIST PRESBYTERIAN ACADEMY IN NASHVILLE.

HAYWOOD SPENT NEARLY 17 YEARS AS A PLAYER AND COACH IN THE AUSTIN PEAY PROGRAM.  HAYWOOD CAME TO AUSTIN PEAY AS A PLAYER IN 1993 AND BEGAN COACHING AT AUSTIN PEAY IN 2000.

COLLEGE BASEBALL

AUSTIN PEAY BEGINS A TWO GAME SERIES WITH SOUTH DAKOTA STATE THIS AFTERNOON AT FOUR P-M AT RAYMOND C. HAND PARK.

MURRAY STATE’S ZACH NOONAN WAS NAMED THE O-V-C HITTER OF THE WEEK AFTER GOING 9-16 IN PLAY LAST WEEK AGAINST NORTH DAKOTA STATE.  THE BREDS RETURN TO ACTION TODAY HOSTING BELMONT AT REAGAN FIELD.

NHL

THE NASHVILLE PREDATORS CONCLUDE THEIR FOUR GAME ROAD TRIP THIS EVENING AT SAN JOSE.  COVERAGE OF THE GAME AT 9:30 ON NEWSTALK 95.3 FM/1230 AM WHOP.