Jace Merz goes up for a shot.
The Mason County Royals are headed to London, Kentucky this weekend to compete in the Legacy Nissan Dribble Drive Challenge before the Holiday break.
The Royals sat at 1-3 on the season prior to Tuesday night’s contest against the Bracken County Polar Bears, and Thursday’s game against the Scott Eagles, and are eager to tip off against three tough opponents when they head to South Laurel this weekend. The Royals’ lone win on the season a 92-84 victory over the Augusta Panthers.
Four games into the year, Mason County is averaging 78.5 points per game, led by Ben Brookbank and Jace Merz. Defensively, the Royals average 27.5 rebounds per game, with Kyson Fox and Brookbank leading the charge.
Their first of three games is set for 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 20 against East Jessamine Jaguars. The Jaguars are 2-4 on the season with wins over the Richmond Guardians (76-18) and Trinity Christian (76-28), and losses to Lafayette, Grant County, South Western and Henry Clay. Six games into the year, East Jessamine is averaging 52.3 points per game, led by Tyson Duke and Carter Wolfe, and averaging 18.7 rebounds per game, led by James Hill and Duke.
Mason County will then return to the court at South Laurel to take on the Owen County Rebels at 4:30 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 21, a team sitting at 3-1 on the season prior to tipping off against Gallatin County on Tuesday, and Henry County this Friday, Dec. 19. The Rebels have picked up wins against Mercer County (51-42) and Shelby County (56-54), dropping to Western Hills (73-70) in their first game of the season. Owen County averages 59.0 points per game, led by Michael Smith and Harper Duvall, putting up 27.3 rebounds per game led by Smith and Briton Stafford.
The Royals will then close out their trip to London with a contest against the currently undefeated Wolfe County Wolves. Wolfe County is 5-0 on the season, with wins over Buckhorn, Estil County, Owsley County, Jackson City and Lee County. The Wolves average 73.8 points per game, led by Jayden Hollon and Caleb Creech, the team averaging 35.2 rebounds per game, led by Jayden Molands and Brady Robinson.
Mason County and Wolfe County will take the floor at South Laurel at 1:30 p.m. Monday, Dec. 22.
After a slow start to the year, with an entirely new starting lineup, the Mason County Royals are eager to compete in their first midseason tournament of the 2025-26 season, following the cancellation of the 2025 Mike Murphy Classic. The Royals hope to return home to Maysville with three more wins in the book, but have three tough opponents on the schedule.
Following the Legacy Nissan Dribble Drive Challenge, Mason County will play their final game of 2025 at home against the Lafayette Generals on Monday, Dec. 29 at 3:30 p.m. Lafayette is 1-3 on the season prior to their Tuesday night game against Tates Creek, and their game this Saturday, Dec. 20 against South Oldham in the Republic Bank-Sayre School Lankster Classic.
