The Kentucky Wildcats are out of town, but Rupp Arena will remain rocking this week with the renewal of the high school Boys' Sweet Sixteen on Wednesday.

The state's single-class playoff system has led to a diverse Sweet Sixteen field that includes big-school powerhouses from Louisville and Central Kentucky, perennial contenders from out west and small-school dreamers from the east and the north.

"Anytime you face somebody in the state tournament, you're getting a team that is playing their best ball," said Billy Hicks, coach of 11th Region champion Scott County (27-6), the state's largest school and top-ranked team. "You can throw all that seeding stuff out at the state tournament. Anybody can beat you."

But Hicks has to feel good about his chances.

His team, which faces Corbin (27-3) of the 13th Region on Wednesday night, sits atop both The Courier-Journal's Litkenhous Ratings and the Lexington Herald-Leader's Dave Cantrall Ratings. The Cardinals boast three seniors who are NCAA Division I recruits.

"We actually have played pretty good basketball the whole season," Hicks said. "We've had ups and downs, but we've played a really tough schedule and have been pretty consistent. All you can ask for is for everybody to be healthy. You should be ready to play this time of year."

Hicks is glad that senior guard Ge-Lawn Guyn, who was formerly committed to Charlotte but is undecided on a college now, appears to be over a bad case of knee tendinitis that slowed him much of the season.

He makes a trio with forward Dakotah Euton, a former UK recruit who's bound for Akron, and Chad Jackson, a James Madison commitment. Both average 15 points and eight rebounds per game.

"Dakotah and Chad have both been really consistent all year," Hicks said.

Saturday's semifinals could include a blockbuster matchup of Scott County and Louisville power Ballard (29-4, No. 2 Litkenhous/No. 3 Cantrall), which won the brutally tough Seventh Region.

The Bruins, who will open against talented Eighth Region champ Shelby County (24-5), might be the state's most athletic team. Guard Ian Chiles, a senior who's being recruited by Evansville, Ball State and Georgetown College, is a dynamic scorer.

"At times I think Ian is the best player in the state," Ballard coach Chris Renner said. "He can take his game to another level.

" ... I'm not going to say we go as Ian goes, but when Ian is playing well, we're very hard to beat."

Throw in inside-outside threat Keisten Jones, who's signed with Bellarmine, and the athleticism of three major-college football prospects --- DeVante Parker, Flo Hardin and Drew Hardin --- and the Bruins can create big matchup problems.

Renner also mentioned that 5-foot-11 guard Tyrell Means, whom he called a "human highlight reel," has 40 dunks this season.

Ballard prepped for the state tournament with a tough schedule that included an early-season 84-81 victory over Scott County and an 18-1 record against Seventh Region teams.

"For us to have the season that we had, considering it was so deep and so tough of a region, you hope it gets us ready for a state tournament," said Renner, whose team scored at least 75 points 20 times this season. "You still have to be ready to play basketball, put the ball in the hoop and play defense."

Whereas Ballard and Scott County are the big-school favorites, 15th Region champ Shelby Valley (enrollment 558) offers hope for the little guy in the bottom half of the bracket.

Coach Jason Booher's club is in the state tournament for the fourth time in his six seasons and for the sixth time in nine years.

The Wildcats (28-4, No. 6 Litkenhous/No. 2 Cantrall), two-time defending champions of the small-school All "A" Classic, are led by senior guard Elisha Justice, the state's record-holder for career steals (531).

Justice, who has 1,991 career points and is a three-time regional MVP, turned down scholarship offers from Eastern Kentucky, Army and Navy and will walk on at Louisville next season.

Booher thinks Justice deserves to be Mr. Basketball.

"He's really quick, got quick hands," Booher said. "He plays extremely hard. He doesn't take a second off. He's the only kid I've been around that controls the game on both ends. He rarely turns the ball over."

Shelby Valley, which won a first-round state game last year, has set the goal of getting to at least Saturday morning's semifinals.

"I think the bottom bracket, any of those eight teams could make the state final," said Booher, whose team will face Paducah Tilgham (27-6) of the First Region on Thursday. "Whichever team gets hot is going to be in the state championship game. We feel really good.

"The top bracket is loaded with a lot of really athletic teams. I think the teams down in our half of the bracket hope that whoever comes out of that top bracket is worn out from playing so many good teams."

A surprise team in that top half is Ninth Region champ Newport (29-5), which shocked defending state champion Holmes 60-34 in the regional final to earn its first state berth since 1962.

Led by Casey McDaniel and regional MVP DeMarcko Foster, Newport (enrollment 505) is the smallest school in the Sweet Sixteen, but it's got big-time momentum.

Coach Aric Russell has told his players that if they can rout Holmes, they can beat anybody. The Wildcats will face a stiff challenge right off the bat against Christian County (29-4, No. 11 Litkenhous/No. 5 Cantrall).

"We've been perceived as an underdog the whole year, the whole tournament," Russell said. "I don't think anyone expected us to even win our first regional game. I'd say it'll be the same for the state tournament. We're just going to come out and play our game just like we always do and see what happens."

***Warren Central (22-8) is back at Rupp after winning the Fourth Region for the first time since 2007. It had won six regional titles in a row before that.

***Third Region champ Muhlenberg County (20-10) is in the state tournament in the school's first year of existence. It's a consolidation of Muhlenberg North and South.

***Mason County (23-6) won the 10th Region for the third straight year. The Royals were 2008 state champs.

***West Jessamine (26-7) of the 12th Region has made back-to-back state tournaments; the Colts did it this year under new coach Damon Kelley, who came from Lafayette. Point guard Jarrod Polson scored 40 points in West Jessamine's regional semifinal against Boyle County and 31 in the final against Mercer County.

***Wednesday (Times Eastern): Warren Central (22-8, Region 4) vs. East Carter (23-5, R-16), noon; Ballard (29-4, R-7) vs. Shelby County (24-5, R-8), 1:30 p.m.; Newport (29-5, R-9) vs. Christian County (29-4, R-2), 6:30 p.m.; Scott County (27-6, R-11) vs. Corbin (27-3, R-13), 8 p.m.

***Thursday: West Jessamine (26-7, R-12) vs. Muhlenberg County (20-10, R-3), noon; Paducah Tilghman (27-6, R-1) vs. Shelby Valley (28-4, R-15), 1:30 p.m.; Mason County (23-6, R-10) vs. North Hardin (27-4, R-5), 6:30 p.m.; Butler (19-11, R-6) vs. Knott County Central (26-6, R-14), 8 p.m.

***Friday: Quarterfinals at noon, 1:30 p.m., 6:30 p.m., 8 p.m.

***Saturday: Semifinals at 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m.; championship game at 8 p.m. (KHSAA says time of final is subject to change)