Malachi Moreno, No. 2 Great Crossing face No. 3 Frederick Douglass tonight for spot in Sweet 16

Four out of 16 tickets to the 2025 Kentucky high school boys’ basketball state tournament have already been punched. A future Kentucky Wildcat could join that group by the end of the day.

Kentucky commit Malachi Moreno will lead the No. 2 Great Crossing Warhawks into a massive showdown against the No. 3 Frederick Douglass Broncos in the 11th Region championship. Moreno, a seven-foot center ranked No. 28 overall in the 2025 class, is averaging 21.6 points, 14.9 rebounds, 3.6 blocks, and 3.5 assists per game this season on 72 percent shooting from the field. He’s one of 16 finalists for the Mr. Kentucky Basketball award.

The game will be hosted at Paul Laurence Dunbar High School in Lexington, KY with tipoff set for 7:00 p.m. EST. Unfortunately, with how the regions are outlined, this matchup means one of the state’s top three teams won’t make the Sweet 16 bracket, but we should be in for a high-level basketball game with Rupp Arena vibes regardless. Great Crossing and Frederick Douglass have been two of the best teams in the Bluegrass all season long and will have the chance to prove it tonight.

Tickets for this must-see event are still on sale (only $10 for general admission) through the link here. Get yours now before they sell out — it’s going to be a jam-packed crowd.

Moreno’s Great Crossing (30-4) squad has been ranked among the state’s top two from the preseason all the way until now. The Warhawks have just one loss to an in-state school, a 72-58 defeat to top-ranked St. Xavier. They come into tonight’s championship having won 22 straight games, including a 59-56 win over No. 5 Bryan Station in the 11th Region semifinals (talk about a loaded bracket…) over the weekend.

Meanwhile, Frederick Douglass (25-4) has dropped all four of its games to in-state schools, although three of them came against an opponent ranked in the top five. The Broncos lost to St. Xavier too, but also came up short against the same Great Crossing team they’ll face tonight, all the way back in the third game of the season. The Warhawks won that head-to-head 78-70 with Moreno dropping 27 points and 15 rebounds.

A shot at redemption is on the line for Frederick Douglass, which is looking to make its second Sweet 16 in three years. For Great Crossing, the Warhawks hope to return to Rupp Arena for the second straight season after coming up short in the semifinals last year to eventual champion Lyon County, led by current Kentucky freshman Travis Perry.

Players to Watch…

Great Crossing

• Sr.) Malachi Moreno (Kentucky commit): 21.6 PPG, 14.9 RPG, 3.6 BPG, 3.5 APG | 71.5 FG%, 62.1 FT%
• Sr.) Vince Dawson (Morehead State commit): 18.1 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 3.3 APG | 52.5 FG%, 36.4 3PT%, 73 FT%
• So.) LJ Holman: 11.4 PPG, 3.7 RPG, 2.6 APG, 1.4 SPG | 59.1 FG%, 37.1 3PT%, 71.4 FT%
• Sr.) Gage Richardson: 8.8 PPG, 3.4 APG, 2.4 RPG | 48.5 FG%, 40.5 3PT%, 71 FT%

Frederick Douglass

• Jr.) DeMarcus Surratt: 16 PPG, 4.2 RPG | 56.7 FG%, 37.5 3PT%, 75.9 FT%
• Sr.) Jaunte Jenkins: 14.2 PPG, 3.9 RPG | 50.5 FG%, 30.4 3PT%, 67.1 FT%
• Sr.) Aveion Chenault (Western Michigan FB commit): 9.2 PPG, 4.5 RPG | 59.6 FG%, 61.1 FT%
• Jr.) Tate Robinson: 9 PPG, 2.9 RPG | 48.4 FG%, 46.4 3PT%