Mid-Season Miss Kentucky Basketball Preview
It’s way too early to say who is going to win the 2023 Miss Kentucky Basketball award, but we can definitely take a look at some of the frontrunners. Here is a preview of some of the players that should be in contention for the award at the end of this season. Please note, this is not a full list of every player that we feel should be a candidate. All statistics pulled for this article came from the KHSAA site.
Kensley Feltner
School: Lawrence County
Committed to: Belmont University
Total Career Points: 3402 points
Total Career Rebounds: 1285 rebounds
Additional Stats/Info: Just take a look at the graphic above… along with her points and rebounds totals, she has had 664+ assists and 342+ steals in her high school career. She is her school’s all-time leading scorer and currently ranks 8th on the all-time leading scorers list for the state. Feltner led Kentucky in scoring last season after averaging 26.9 PPG. The current minimum on the state’s leaderboards is 10 games played and Feltner’s Bulldogs team has only played 9 games, but if they had met that minimum, she would be currently leading the state as well with her 28 PPG average. She can do it a little bit of everything on the court and has been able to put up these numbers while often being double- or triple-teamed.
Haven Ford
School: Rowan County
Committed to: Murray State University
Total Career Points: 2746 points
Total Career Rebounds: 1175 rebounds
Additional Stats/Info: Ford is such a well-rounded player. She can bring the ball down the floor or play off of the ball, but she’s going to be disruptive either way. She can singlehandedly take over a game, but she’s also a very unselfish player. Ford is Rowan County’s all-time leading scorer and she also holds the all-time assist record. I wouldn’t be surprised if she didn’t break every single one of the Vikings records by the time this season is over as she has 2700+ points, 1100+ rebounds, 600+ assists, and 500+ steals.
Jakayla Thompson
School: DuPont Manual
Committed to: University of Buffalo
Total Career Points: 1404 points
Total Career Rebounds: 500 rebounds
Additional Stats/Info: Thompson also has 500+ assists and had 433 total steals at the end of her junior season, so she’s on pace to finish her high school career with 1500+ points, 600+ rebounds, 500+ assists, and 500+ steals. While those are super solid all-around numbers, it’s also important to mention that her sophomore season was cut short due to COVID. Most of the players on this list had the same issue, but it looks like Thompson’s team actually only played in February of her sophomore season while most of the others at least started play by the beginning of January. If you want to know how truly versatile she is, Thompson is a guard who has been dominating in the post this season.
Brianna Byars
School: George Rogers Clark
Committed to: University of Cincinnati
Total Career Points: 1855 points
Total Career Rebounds: 940 rebounds
Additional Stats/Info: Byars has been putting up impressive numbers since she was in the 7th grade. She’s got great length and height to go along with her skills. She is a very versatile player who can make a lot happen inside or out. Her hands and touch around the rim really make her a difficult assignment for any defender. She should finish her high school career with over 2000 points and over 1000 rebounds. Byars career record at GRC is 131-39 and she has made it to the KHSAA Sweet 16 nearly every season (only didn’t make it once).
Destiny Thomas
School: McCracken County
Committed to: Murray State University
Total Career Points: 2102 points
Total Career Rebounds: 898 rebounds
Additional Stats/Info: You can look at Thomas’ impressive numbers and see how talented she is, but what those numbers don’t show is that she missed her entire sophomore season which only makes it that much more impressive that she’s been able to do what she has throughout her high school career. Thomas can obviously put the ball in the basket and she can score inside or out, but she’s also an excellent defender. She can get multiple steals or blocks in any given game. She helped her Mustangs finish with only 2 losses last season.
Meadow Tisdale
School: Bowling Green
Committed to: Northern Kentucky University
Total Career Points: 1540 points
Total Career Rebounds: 1076 rebounds
Additional Stats/Info: What Tisdale’s numbers don’t reflect is how many talented players she’s had alongside her throughout her high school career. She has played with multiple other Division-1 players, and she still is playing with multiple, but has managed to put up those numbers regardless. Tisdale is tough in every sense of the word. She can handle a lot of contact and she can score through post moves, jump shots, floaters, etc. Tisdale consistently crashes the boards and has shown her talent on some of the biggest stages.
Abby Holtman
School: Ryle
Committed to: University of Cincinnati
Total Career Points: 1235 points
Total Career Rebounds: 389 rebounds
Additional Stats/Info: Holtman has an accomplishment that only 1 other player in this post has and that is a KHSAA State Championship. Her team was able to come home with the championship when she was in the 8th grade. Her Ryle team was loaded with talent, so she actually didn’t get to play much her 7th or 8th grade years (only 4 of her total points and rebounds come from those years), which makes her career numbers even more impressive. Her high release shot is extremely tough to block, but Holtman can consistently score at all 3 levels. She’s really been a leader for the Raiders all throughout her high school years despite being constantly surrounded by high level talent.
Timberlynn Yeast
School: Mercer County
Committed to: University of Buffalo
Total Career Points: 2105 points
Total Career Rebounds: 995 rebounds
Additional Stats/Info: Yeast has been tough to stop since she was an 8th grader. Well, even before then, but prior to her 8th grade season, her Mercer County team had 5 starters that all went on to play at the collegiate level as they won the KHSAA State Championship back-to-back years in 2017 and 2018. It says a lot that Yeast actually got playing time on that state championship team as a 7th grader, but that truly is how talented she is. Unfortunately, she tore her ACL and MCL before she could play in an actual game this season, but anyone who has watched her play would have no doubts as to how impressive her senior season numbers would’ve been. Since she is out for the season, it’s going to be tough for her to win the 12th Region Player of the Year award that would make her eligible for the Miss KY Basketball award, but her numbers truly exemplify why she should still be in the conversation.