Greenwaves to take on Male in King of the Bluegrass By Zach Greenwell The Meade County Greenwave basketball team (4-1) will return to action on Thursday night at the King of the Bluegrass tournament in Fairdale. The Greenwaves will take on Male High School in the first round at 9 p.m. Male (3-1, as of Dec. 8) was ranked 10th preseason in the state by the Courier-Journal and third in the 7th Region. According to Greenwave head coach Jerry Garris, the Bulldogs will be the fastest team Meade sees all year, if not the fastest he has seen in his five-year tenure. “They are bullets,” said Garris. “They’re not very big, but they can flat out move.” However, Garris also believes the Greenwaves could be successful if they are able to dictate the style of play. “If we can keep playing like we have and take care of the basketball, we may be all right,” said Garris. “If we turn the ball over to them, they have the ability to score a ton of points on you before you can even get a time-out.” Garris worries because his Greenwaves are not able to practice against the Bulldogs’ speed, but feels that seeing that kind of athleticism is a positive thing, win or lose. “There is no way we can emulate how quick this bunch is,” he said. “But it’s going to help us and we will be a better team because of this game. But if we can get the ball down to our end and execute, we may be able to cause them some problems.” The first round of the King of the Bluegrass takes place on Thursday and Friday, with the second round taking place on Saturday, the third on Monday, and the final on Tuesday. Every team is guaranteed two games, and the Greenwaves will play the winner/loser of the Doss-Franklin County matchup on Saturday at 7:30 p.m., regardless of Thursday night’s outcome. “We have got to forget about the loss to Campbellsville and move forward,” said junior Nick Stinnett. “We will have to practice hard the next three days and work on defense. Against Campbellsville we didn’t play great on the defensive end, and the only way we can beat Male is if we come out ready to play and rebound because they are really quick.” Male Players to Watch Doug Beaumont, senior guard – This year’s Mr. Football is a premier Kentucky hoops player, as well. The 5’9” guard, ranked the 11th best player in the state by the Courier-Journal, notched 18 points against Fern Creek last Friday. Dexter Heyman, senior forward/center – The 6’4” Heyman is small for a five man, but don’t let that fool you. The senior scored 20 points and pulled down 14 rebounds in the Bulldogs’ 53-51 victory over last year’s state champion, Jeffersontown.
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