DALTON KEY TO BULLDOGS SEASON
Third year Lawrence Co. head coach Travis York will have some work today on his next installment of Bulldogs in the 2016-2017 season that is just right around the corner.
Coming off the teams first ever appearance in the KHSSA State basketball tournament in Rupp Arena the Dawgs will look vastly different for the first time in four years after losing Robert Dalton the school’s all time leading scorer, Brandon Richardson a 1900 point scorer, Austin Chaffins all time leading assist man and 1400 point scorer and Grant Kiser a 1200 point scorer. Those four along with the only returning starter for this year’s team Timmy Dalton combined to win 89 games the last four seasons
Louisa, Ky. — Third year Lawrence Co. head coach Travis York will have some work to do on his next installment of Bulldogs in the 2016-2017 season that is just right around the corner.
Coming off the school’e first ever appearance in the KHSSA State basketball tournament in Rupp Arena the Dawgs will look vastly different for the first time in four years after losing Robert Dalton the schools all time leading scorer, Brandon Richardson a 1900 point scorer, Austin Chaffins all time leading assist man and 1400 point scorer and Grant Kiser a 1200 point scorer. Those four along with the only returning starter for this year’s team Timmy Dalton combined to win 89 games the last four seasons.
6-3 Senior Timmy Dalton needs 64 points to pass his brother Robert to become the school’s all time leading scorer. He should get it in the first week of the season. Dalton the #1 ranked player in the 15th region and a verbal commit to Salem International University will look to do a brunt of the scoring this season and be a team leader for the other inexperienced Dawgs.
Junior Alex Gilliam who saw spot duty last season as a defensive stopper will have to step up and play a ton of minutes and handle the ball a lot.
Senior Cameron Maynard the teams tallest player at 6-4 will have to rebound and block some shots to be the inside force that Coach York needs.
Junior sharp shooting Trey Dotson will provide three point shooting and should get some open looks as teams will have to double team Dalton.
6-2 8th Grader Jared Wellman could be the teams best shooter and likely other starter who will allow Dalton to spread the floor because of his ability to knock down open shots. 6-3
Senior football star Jordan 
Johnson could also crack the starting lineup even though he hasn’t played a game of high school basketball.
Johnson is very athletic, fast and can really jump which is exactly what the Dawgs need. LC has some talented freshman on the roster as well in — Tyler Maynard, Chase Sartin and Alex Ratliff. Sophomore Ashton Blankenship could provide some inside depth. Junior Weston Hardin and Sophomore Noah Fairchild have shown some promise.
The Bulldogs schedule this season will be different as they mostly stay in the 15th and 16th regions after traveling all over the state the last couple years.
Schedule
https://scoreboard.12dt.com/scoreboard/khsaa/kybbk16/49832
Lawrence Co. will still be the favorite to capture the 60th district championship for the third straight season with Pike Co. Central, Belfry and Phelps in that order. As far as the 15th region goes it will be Magoffin Co., and Sheldon Clark the top 2 teams then Johnson Central, Lawrence Co. and Pikeville rounding out the top 5 in no particular order.
The Dawgs will have two preseason games the first will be at Johnson Central vs 14th Region foe Knott Co. Central at 3:30 on Saturday November 19th and then in the Zip Zone Classic which will be held at Lawrence Co. vs Shelby Valley at 8:30 on Saturday November 26th.
Lawrence Co. Head Coach Travis York
COACH’S COMMENTS
“… Going to be a little bit different this year, I think Timmy is the best player in the region and one of the best players in the state and I look for him to lead us and also challenge the young guys on our team to be the best they can be each and every night. Going to take a little while for us to gel but I think we are going to surprise some folks this year. I’m really excited to get going and see what we have on the court.” We were so balanced last year and any of the five starters could get 25 points on any given night, this year a lot of it will on Timmy and then the other guys will have to make open shots because the other defenses will collapse on Dalton. Another key to this year’s team will be if we can get a stop in a close game down the stretch or get that key rebound when we need too.” Alex Gilliam and Cameron Maynard will really have to step up this year and play a ton of minutes, both are capable and have gotten better over the summer and into preseason practices as well.” Trey Dotson last year was the best shooter we had in practice it was unfortunate for him the last couple of years that he was behind some really good players but now it is his time to shine and have a really good year.” Really excited about our young kids who will gain valuable experience this season including 8th Grader Jared Wellman who has a chance to start varsity and will help out a lot if he can knock down shots from the outside like he has so far.” Our style won’t be like the last couple years but we are not going to be slow if we can get a good look easy in the possession we will take it I would rather do that then pass the ball ten times and get a turnover.” Our schedule is a little bit different this year, not as much traveling and not playing as much over the holidays this season. Can’t wait to get started and see what the season has in store for us.”
Lawrence Co. Senior Timmy Dalton
“… Going to be a lot different this season for me and for this team, won’t be able to rely on the guys we had last year and all of the experience they brought to the table. The guys we have this year are talented but haven’t played a lot at the varsity level.” I’m going to have to play a lot of minutes this year and have to be at my very best every night I can’t have lapses like I did last year were I could rely on the other guys. Very confident in my teammates this season just going to be a slow process but I look for us to be right in the thick of things at the end.” I have to step up and be a leader this year and really look forward to that I think we have a good mixture of players. Me personally I’m going to do whatever it takes to win I got the Rupp taste last year and that’s where I want to take this team.”
