Kentucky boys all-stars score their biggest win against Indiana in more than 25 years

During introductions for the Kentucky vs. Indiana all-star series boys game on Friday night at Lexington Catholic High School, it was incoming UK basketball player Travis Perry — a Sweet 16 state champion and the 2024 Kentucky Mr. Basketball at Lyon County — who drew the loudest cheers.

But by the end of the night, it was Oldham County’s Max Green, a 6-foot-7 forward who is going to Holy Cross for college basketball, who earned the loudest reaction from a vocal crowd inside the LexCath gym.

Green led all scorers with 36 points as the Kentucky boys all-stars erased a 19-point first-half deficit to throttle Indiana 103-82 in the opening game of the annual all-star series between the two states.

The 21-point margin of victory for Kentucky was the largest for the state’s representatives against Indiana since a 33-point win in 1997.

“We have an amazing team this year,” Green told Mountain Top Sports, which broadcast both the boys and girls all-star series games, on Friday night. “Obviously Travis, a legendary player in Kentucky. Our whole group is really good and so it’s really special. We’ve just been talking about how we want to do something special.”

The 36 points scored by Green were the most by a Kentucky player in one game in the all-star series since former Louisville men’s basketball player Quentin Snyder (Ballard) scored 37 points in 2014.

Green (who scored 25 points in the second half alone) said he departs for Holy Cross — a school located in Worcester, Massachusetts, that plays in the Patriot League — on Sunday, just hours after the Kentucky vs. Indiana all-star series concludes following a Saturday night girls-boys doubleheader in Indianapolis.

Four Kentucky players scored in double figures in the win, which came despite Indiana leading by six points at halftime: Green led the way with his 36-point night, which included a 14-for-16 shooting performance from the floor and a perfect 9-for-9 night on two-point attempts.

Seneca’s Quel’Ron House, a 6-foot-3 guard who will play in college at Jacksonville State, had 16 points. Perry — the all-time leading scorer in Kentucky boys high school basketball history who earlier this week moved into his on-campus dorm at UK — scored 12 points. Perry also had five steals, three assists and three rebounds in his penultimate pre-college game.

“It’s been a lot of fun, a clash of titans. It’s been great,” Perry told Mountain Top Sports about the Kentucky vs. Indiana all-star experience. “It’s been really good (being Kentucky Mr. Basketball). Anytime you can have an honor like that, one person every year gets it. So to be that guy for my class, it just puts that emphasis on it, and it’s just about going out and playing as hard as you can every night and trying to win games like this.”

Other notable Central Kentucky connections in the game included Lexington Catholic’s Tyler Doyle, who scored nine points and grabbed eight rebounds while playing in his home gym. The 6-foot-5 Doyle will be playing college basketball at Bellarmine.

Indiana was led in scoring by Jack Benter, a 6-foot-6 forward who will play at Purdue. He had 16 points on 6-for-12 shooting from the field.

Indiana’s Mr. Basketball, future Kansas Jayhawk Flory Bidunga, had 13 points and four rebounds before he fouled out of the game midway through the second half. The 6-foot-9 Bidunga, a former Kentucky recruit, was called for a technical foul while celebrating a dunk en route to fouling out.

Kentucky led by one point when Bidunga was dismissed. Then the Kentucky all-stars went on a 19-2 run. For the entire second half, Kentucky outscored Indiana by a 60-33 margin.

Indiana’s Micah Davis, a 6-foot-2 guard who will be playing at Eastern Kentucky next season, had eight points, two assists and two rebounds.

The only double-double in the boys game was produced by 6-foot-6 Keenan Garner from Indiana: The future player for IU Indianapolis (formerly known as IUPUI) had 15 points and 10 rebounds.

Indiana still leads the all-time boys series 103-46 over Kentucky. Last year, Kentucky and Indiana split the boys series, with each team winning in its home state. The Kentucky boys’ 2023 win in Owensboro — which came without 2023 Kentucky Mr. Basketball Reed Sheppard playing — snapped a seven-game losing streak in the series for Kentucky.

Friday night’s win at LexCath marked just the fourth win in the annual rivalry series for the Kentucky boys since 1998.

Indiana claims victory over Kentucky in girls all-star game

Prior to the boys’ nightcap, Indiana claimed a 90-79 win against Kentucky in a competitive girls all-star showdown.

Indiana was led in that contest by Juliann Woodard, a 6-foot forward who scored 23 points. Woodard will be playing college basketball next season at Michigan State.

Leading all scorers in the game was Kentucky’s Shaelyn Steele, a 5-foot-6 guard from Russell, with 25 points. She will also be playing college basketball in the Big Ten next season at Penn State. Steele also had six assists and five rebounds.

The only double-double in the girls’ game came courtesy of Destiny Jones, a 5-foot-10 forward from Central High School in Louisville, who had 15 points and 11 rebounds. Jones, who snagged eight offensive boards in the contest, will be playing in college at West Georgia.

Other notable Central Kentucky connections in the girls all-star game were Frederick Douglass’ Ayanna-Sarai Darrington (a 6-foot-2 post who scored three points and grabbed two rebounds) and Mercer County’s Anna Drakeford (a 5-foot-8 guard who had an assist).

Darrington will be playing college basketball at Central Michigan and Drakeford will be playing at Thomas More.

Sacred Heart’s Reagan Bender, who is going to Louisville, had 12 points on 4-for-5 shooting from the field.

Butler’s Ramiya White, a UK signee under former head coach Kyra Elzy who will now play at Virginia Tech, had seven points and two rebounds.

Pikeville’s Trinity Rowe, the 2024 Kentucky Miss Basketball who will be playing at Southern Mississippi, had five points and five assists. Rowe’s 34 minutes played led all Kentucky players.

Indiana leads Kentucky in the girls series all-time, 54-41. Last year, Kentucky and Indiana also split the girls’ series, with each team winning on its home floor.

Kentucky vs. Indiana series heads to Indianapolis

Now, the all-star series shifts to Indiana for a Saturday night doubleheader at Gainbridge Fieldhouse (the home of the NBA’s Indiana Pacers) in downtown Indianapolis.

On Saturday, the Kentucky vs. Indiana girls game starts at 5 p.m., with the boys game to follow at around 7:30 p.m.

Tickets are available starting at $10 via Ticketmaster.

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