Previewing quarterfinal action at the 2022 Boy's Sweet 16 Tournament

16 teams entered and only eight remain after the first two days of the 2022 UK HealthCare Boy’s Sweet 16. The opening 48 hours provided us with just about every possible scenario for a first-round tilt: low-scoring slugfests, lopsided blowouts, multiple top 10 matchups, and plenty of individual star power. Unfortunately, two of the state’s top stars, Kentucky commit Reed Sheppard and Louisville commit Kaleb Glenn, were knocked out in the first round — that’s how tough the competition has been thus far.

Friday will feature four quarterfinal contests spread throughout the day, starting at 11:00 AM between Lincoln County and North Oldham before concluding at 8:30 PM between Murray and Warren Central. Let’s preview all four matchups ahead of what should be an exciting day of hoops at Rupp Arena.

No. 9 Lincoln County (30-7) vs. North Oldham (19-12)

11:00 AM

Round 1: No. 9 Lincoln County 45, No. 14 Jeffersontown 41 | North Oldham 36, Muhlenberg County 32

Both Lincoln County and North Oldham won their opening-round games by a combined total of eight points. Neither bout saw the winning team crack the 50-point mark as scoring was hard to come by, but mostly due to effective defense on the other end.

Lincoln County, which typically runs a man-to-man defense, broke out a 2-3 zone against Jeffersontown that confused a normally efficient Chargers offense. Behind 26 combined points from junior guard Colton Ralston (14) and senior guard Jaxon Smith (12), Lincoln County was able to muster up enough offense to secure a four-point win and move on to the next round. However, a 13-22 mark from the free-throw line won’t do the Patriots any favors if that number repeats itself again on Friday.

Much like Lincoln County, North Oldham had to grind out a slow-paced victory over Muhlenberg County, which preferred to bring the game’s speed to a near halt in the second half, which ultimately played right into North Oldham’s favor. Leading scorer, junior points guard Dallas Roberts, scored all 10 of his points in the first half, but it was 12 points and 11 rebounds on 6-7 shooting from junior forward Luke Anderson that proved to be the difference down the stretch. That being said, another two-point quarter for North Oldham like they saw in the third frame against Muhlenberg won’t cut it two games in a row.

No. 1 George Rogers Clark (34-1) vs. No. 8 Pikeville (32-2)

1:30 PM

Round 1: No.1 George Rogers Clark 77, No. 18 Perry County Central 36 | No. 8 Pikeville 59, No. 6 North Laurel 51

George Rogers Clark sure did look the tournament favorite in their 41-point opening win against Perry County Central, but Pikeville figures to provide much more of a challenge. The Panthers knocked off fan-favorite Reed Sheppard and North Laurel on Wednesday and will look to ride that momentum to another upset.

GRC has been in a position to win the state championship the last couple of years, but 2022 appears to be the best chance yet. Considering other powerhouse schools such as Ashland Blazer and Male have already been knocked out, the field leans even more in favor of the Cardinals. GRC junior guard Jerone Morton was spectacular against Perry County Central and has been all season long. Expect another big outing from the 6-foot-4 slasher who is receiving plenty of Divison I interest.

The Pikeville Panthers come into this game as underdogs once again with a pretty sizable chip on their shoulder. Led by former Louisville player Elisha Justice, Pikeville was not even remotely phased by the bright lights of playing not only in Rupp Arena, but against a future Wildcat in Sheppard. Senior point guard Keian Worrix and 6-foot-7 junior forward Rylee Samons shocked a crowd of 12,000-plus people on Wednesday night and they’ll look to do it again on Friday afternoon.

No. 22 Lyon County (29-6) vs. No. 3 Covington Catholic (29-4)

6:00 PM

Round 1: No. 22 Lyon County 82, No. 25 John Hardin 65 | No. 3 Covington Catholic 76, No. 7 Ashland Blazer 65

Outside of George Rogers Clark, Covington Catholic is the toughest team left in the field. Taking down No. 7 Ashland Blazer in the opener behind a second-half run was no fun treat, but it did prove that the Colonels are serious about winning it all. Lyon County and 3,000-point scorer Travis Perry will look to play spoiler.

The Lyon County Lyons will run the team’s offense through 6-foot-2 Perry, who can score with the best of them in the state and dropped 26 points in his team’s opening win over John Hardin. It’s not just Perry who can get things going though. The Shoulders brothers, Brady (So.) and Jackson (Sr.), bring plenty of help alongside the sophomore Perry, who has already received an offer from Ole Miss. Brady and Jackson Shoulders, both roughly 6-foot-5, combined for 40 points and 19 rebounds on Wednesday. Covington Catholic will have its hands full.

As for the Colonels, junior guard Evan Ipsaro and junior forward Chandler Starks were the two engines behind Covington Catholic’s impressive second-half comeback over Ashland Blazer. Trailing by seven at the break, Ipsaro and Starks combined for 29 points over the third and four quarters as Covington Catholic won those two periods by 18 points en route to a double-digit victory. They didn’t even need a big game from 6-foot-7 Miami (OH) commit Mitchell Rylee, who finished with a modest 11 points and six rebounds.

Of all the games on Friday, this one has the potential to be the most exciting in terms of scoring, barring Lyon County can keep the contest tight.

No. 23 Murray (26-6) vs. No. 5 Warren Central (27-3)

8:30 PM

Round 1: No. 23 Murray 57, No. 14 Henry Clay 53 | No. 5 Warren Central 57, No. 2 Male 54 (OT)

Both Murray and Warren Central needed all 32 minutes (and even four more in the case of Warren Central) to advance to the quarterfinals round. Murray added a pair of clutch shots in the final 90 seconds to sneak past Henry Clay while Warren Central won an overtime war over Male in what was the lone top 5 matchup of the first round.

Murray is the clear underdog entering the nightcap, but the Tigers showed plenty of confidence and poise in a tight win over Henry Clay, particularly down the stretch. Murray received a combined 36 points from their two go-to scorers, junior guard Grant Whitaker and senior forward Trey Boggess, and will lean heavily on those two once again against the Dragons.

Warren Central will come in battle-tested after gutting out Thursday night’s win over Male, but on just 24 hours of rest. However, head coach Will Unseld spreads his scoring across multiple players for a multi-faceted offensive attack. Five different Warren Central players came into the tournament averaging at least 9.0 points per game, with three of them easily breaking that mark against Male. Murray won’t provide nearly as much of a challenge on defense or in terms of height as Male did, either.