PREVIEW – Wildcats Searching for Offensive Punch for 2021 Season (w/VIDEO)

1-10-adams

Chad Burgett begins year two as Trigg County basketball coach with some key people back and some uncertainty in the post.

The Wildcats were 11-19 last year and were a last-second shot away from advancing to the region tournament. Instead, they missed out on advancing to the district championship for the third straight year after four consecutive district titles.

The pieces were expected to be in place to snap that streak in 2021 despite the district’s competitiveness at its highest since the departure of Caldwell County nearly 15 years ago.  But Burgett finds himself doing some retooling as the season begins.

Jordan Miles led the Wildcats in scoring as an eighth-grader at 12 points a game. His father Toby was an assistant coach with the Wildcats last year but took the Christian County head coaching job over the summer. Jordan, of course, followed.

Trigg’s other double-digit scorer from last year, Kion Thompson, is not back in 2021,

The Wildcats do return three starters who averaged just under 10 points a game last year. Junior Kendric Adams is a three-year starter and All-District performer who scored nine points and was second on the team with 6.7 rebounds. His versatility will allow Burgett to move him around where needed on the floor.

Jhaden Vaughn scored 9.5 points as an eighth-grader and has grown to 6-foot-4.  With Miles’ departure, Burgett expects to make Vaughn his full-time points guard.  He will also be counted on to rebound more.

Junior Khyran Vaughn led the Wildcats in rebounding at eight a game to go with eight points. Burgett is hoping for more consistency out of Vaughn in a district where both contenders return their big men.

After that, Burgett will rely on a bunch of guys with potential who can do good things in certain game situations. How much good they do will determine how good the team can be.

The Wildcats are a guard-heavy bunch. Junior Tyler Ahart saw increased playing time down the stretch last year and can play the one or the two. His cousin Dallas Ahart, also a junior, gives Trigg a shooter on the wing and a wing defender with his 6-foot-4 frame.

Juniors Tiler Ware and Hunter Reynolds along with sophomores Aquarius Gude and Kelsey Parham give the Wildcats a good mix of shooting and speed off the bench.  Junior Aidan Moore was expected to be one of Trigg’s first guards off the bench but was injured in preseason practice.

Trigg’s backcourt roster was bolstered with the addition of senior transfer De’Von Ladd, the brother of former UHA player Jalin Ladd.

6-3 sophomore Luke Washer and 6-0 freshman TayShaun Linton provide Trigg’s lone backups in the frontcourt.

Trigg County was not a good shooting team last year, hitting just 37-percent from the field, 26-percent behind the arc, and 59-percent at the free throw line.  The result was a Wildcat team that failed to score 60 points a game for the fourth straight season.  That won’t cut it in a district that features the region’s top scorer at Lyon County and the region’s best big man at Crittenden County.

If Trigg’s defense can force turnovers and score while pushing the tempo, they should exceed last year’s win total.

The Wildcats open their season at home Monday against Marshall County.

 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Posts

All articles loaded
No more articles to load
Loading...