Kentucky high school basketball showing out on national stage

Saturday saw three of Kentucky’s biggest basketball programs face off against three different national powerhouses—and all of them held their own.

GRC (6-0) def. No. 22 Lake Highland Prep (FL) (6-1) 76-60

Kentucky’s No. 4 team in George Rogers Clark dominated the No. 22 team in the nation in Lake Highland Prep (FL) Saturday afternoon.

It was Jerone Morton’s 30 points that made the difference in their showcase at the King of the Bluegrass tournament. He was followed up by teammates Trent Edwards and Tanner Walton’s combined 29—add Morton’s nine rebounds to the mix and you have all the makings of a blowout with national consequences on your hands.

Lake Highland Prep, led by four-star small forward and Ohio State commit Brice Sensabaugh, trailed the Cardinals from the second period on thanks to their stellar defense. Sensabaugh still earned his keep with 26 points and nine rebounds while teammate Jared Berry notched 22 points as well. Other than that—the Highlanders were nonexistent offensively.

The victory improves GRC to 6-0 on the season and they will continue their King of the Bluegrass gauntlet against a top-50 team nationally, according to MaxPreps, in Dorman High School (SC) Sunday at 4:30 p.m.

IMG Academy (7-1) def. Ballard (5-2) 75-61

The final score is not indicative of how Kentucky’s No. 1 team (No. 32 nationally, per MaxPreps) in Ballard fought against a national powerhouse in IMG Academy during the City of Palms tournament. The Bruins even led the Ascenders 35-30 at halftime.

“[My team] got embarrassed in the first half, so I think they decided to knuckle up, play some defense, get some rebounds, pass the ball to each other as opposed to the other team, and we were able to buckle down and do that,” IMG Academy head coach Sean McAloon said.

IMG’s five-star backcourt guards Jaden Bradley and Keyonte George led the charge for the Ascenders to outscore Ballard by 15 in the third quarter to take a 57-47 lead heading into the final period before finishing them off for a 14-point victory.

“Once we got to our brand of basketball, I feel like that’s when we started to push the lead open,” Walker said.

George led the team with 24 points while 2022’s top power forward in Jarace Walker finished with 14 points and six assists. Ballard’s Gabe Sisk led the Bruins with 16 points and seven rebounds while Keno Hayden and Maker Bar combined for 27.

Ballard has a break until Dec. 26 when they take on Great Crossing in the White, Greer & Maggard Holiday Classic at Lexington Catholic.

USchool (FL) (7-4) def. Lexington Catholic (8-1) 53-52

Speaking of the Knights, they traveled to Coral Springs, Florida to participate in the Kreul Classic against the reigning FHSAA Class 5A State Champions in University School.

Lexington Catholic’s Jack Gohmann and Reece Potter led both sides with 23 and 19 points, respectively.

The difference in the game? A four-point second-quarter performance that saw USchool take a 25-17 lead heading into the locker room. The Knights outscored the Sharks 35-28 in the second half but ultimately came up one point short.

Lexington Catholic takes on another major Florida opponent in Miami Senior Sunday at 3 p.m. before heading back to Kentucky to participate in the White, Greer & Maggard Holiday Classic on their home court the day after Christmas.