Sweet 16 notes ... tourney observations

Someone in the Kentucky High School Athletic Association office should get a gold star for this display of genius.

Earlier in the week, the KHSAA recognized Edmonson County's surprise state championship team of 1976. As it turned out, Shelby Valley's run to the state title was reminiscent of the Wildcats' ascension to the throne.

Both teams were smaller schools from rural areas and have enrollments in the low 600s. And the general perception was that both benefitted from being in the easier of the two brackets — Christian County, which lost to Edmonson in the championship game, had to survive close games against Ashland, Louisville Shawnee and Lexington Henry Clay to get to the final, and Shelby Valley slugged its way through the lower bracket while Louisville Ballard, Scott County, Christian County and Warren Central fought up top.

In fact, there were a lot of people in Rupp Arena on Friday that felt that that day's afternoon quarterfinal session might be the real final four. Ballard blew a 20-point lead against Warren Central before winning on a last-second 3-pointer, and Scott County fought off massive foul trouble to come from behind and beat Christian County.

Shelby Valley spoiled that premise, however, with an exemplary display of basketball. With Louisville-bound point guard Elisha Justice leading the way, the Wildcats won their first three games by an average of nearly 20 points, then defeated Ballard 73-61.

• Justice's performance has some people re-evaluating their assessment of his game. Justice turned down some mid-major offers to take a walk-on slot for Rick Pitino at Louisville, and truth be told, there aren't many that see him as anything more than an extra body for the Cardinals.

He's a 5-10 point guard and not exceptionally quick and athletic by Division I standards, but Justice showed a better outside shot than many had given him credit for a week ago — in four games, he scored 97 points and, surprisingly, was 13-for-22 from 3-point range. The rest of his numbers (15 assists, nine steals, 10 turnovers) were equally impressive, and he was a remarkable 22-for-23 from the free throw line.

And while there is little doubt that last week's effort sealed his bid to become Kentucky's Mr. Basketball award winner, it's still hard to see Justice as little more than a practice player for Pitino. But, as a walk-on, he will be a nice player to push the Cardinals' other guards.

• Scott County's band of all-star transfers fell short of its bid for a state title, but several players that appeared with the Cardinals in the 2008 version of Marshall County's Hoop Fest will continue their careers on the Division I level.

Dakotah Euton, who had once given a verbal commitment to then-Kentucky coach Billy Gillispie, will play at Akron. Guard Chad Jackson — like Euton, he played in the Hoop Fest for both Scott County and Rose Hill Christian — has committed to James Madison.

Guard Ge'Lawn Guyn, who started his career at Lexington Henry Clay, had once committed to Charlotte but has since re-opened his recruitment.

Some consider West Jessamine guard Jarrod Polson, like Justice, to be a little too small for the high-Division I level, but apparently Polson (57 points and nine assists in two games) has one potential suitor in Mississippi State. Bulldogs coach Rick Stansbury, a Meade County native, was on hand to watch Polson play on Thursday, a night after his team beat Jackson State in the opening round of the NIT.

Louisville Ballard's Keisten Jones, a 6-3 swingman, looks like a steal for Division II power Bellarmine. Christian County's Shaquille Wilson has some Division I interest, but he will have to first recover from his second concussion of the season, suffered on an accidental elbow from a Scott County player in the waning seconds of their quarterfinal clash.

Christian County point guard Anthony Hickey (46 points, six assists in two games) raised his stock at the Sweet 16, and Warren Central's junior duo of 6-7 George Fant and guard Jordan Shanklin played well.

The best prospect on hand, however, may have been Shelby County freshman Darryl Hicks, a 6-3 guard who was 6-for-11 from 3-point range and scored 30 points in a first-round loss to Louisville Ballard.

Hicks' destination for next season remains a bit of a mystery. Shelby County is splitting into two schools next year, and Hicks lives in the district for the new school, Martha Layne Collins High. But Hicks nearly transferred to North Oldham last fall and there is speculation that he could end up in Louisville, perhaps at Ballard, Eastern or Trinity.

According to Jody Demling, the Louisville Courier-Journal's well-informed recruiting guru, Hicks already has a scholarship offer from Indiana and could field offers from Kentucky and Louisville sometime this spring.

• Muhlenberg County coach Reggie Warford played at Kentucky, but never took the court in Rupp Arena. Warford was a senior in 1976, when the Wildcats won the NIT and played their final season in Memorial Coliseum.

Jack Givens, a UK teammate of Warford's, was on hand to watch the Mustangs' first-round loss to West Jessamine.

But Warford is getting support from the state's basketballl community for another reason. He was recently diagnosed with leukemia and started undergoing treatment a few weeks ago. Warford's doctors feel that they caught the disease in its early stages and that it is likely to be treated successfully.

Warford is a Muhlenberg native, having played at now-defunct Drakesboro in the early 1970s. He was coaching in Pittsburgh before returning home to coach Muhlenberg's first consolidated team, and he has two sons that start for him.