Renovated Bobby Keith Gymnasium opens Friday night!

Fans will get their first glimpse of the renovated Bobby Keith Gymnasium Friday night as the Clay County Tigers host the Harlan Green Dragons in the Bobby Keith Classic.

The floor was finished Wednesday and Clay got their first workout later that day.

“We’ve been in the middle school gym since the renovation work started,” coach Michael Jones said. “I’m glad to be back in our home gym and it looks outstanding.”

Work is not completed but fans will see many changes already. One of those will be how they enter the gym, according to athletic director Tom Nicholson.

“Due to construction, fans will enter the main entrance of the school,” he said.

The Clay County Board of Education has funded a complete renovation of Bobby Keith Gymnasium that included a new floor, seats, lights and paint.

“Fans will be shocked I feel like,” Nicholson said. “The gym is much brighter and our floor looks fantastic.”

The work on the floor was done by a contractor that did the Chicago Bulls floor as well as Michael Jordan’s personal gym floors, according to Nicholson.

Work inside the gym is not finished, he added.

“We have graphics for the walls that will not be ready in time for the home opener,” he said. “Our goal was to hopefully be able to play by December and we’ve met that goal. But be patient, we’ve got a lot more to come by next season.”

HARLAN GREEN DRAGONS

Harlan lost their core unit but returns one of the best players in the region in Kyler McClendon. McClendon had an outstanding junior season averaging 22ppg.

“He made 100-303 shots from three-point range at a clip of 33%,” Jones said. “You can’t give him any space because he can knock down the jumper.”

Trent Cole, a 5-9 freshman, is the other returning starter and is also a threat from beyond the arch.

Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.

JAGUAR TIP-OFF CLASSIC

The Tigers will be back in action on Saturday at 3 p.m. at East Jessamine High School as they face 12th region powerhouse Mercer County in the Jaguar Tip-Off Classic.

Mercer is coming off a 14-18 season that saw them lose in the opening round of the 12th region tournament. Keith Adkins takes over as the new coach and excitement is building around the program.

Adkins brings plenty experience as a college coach to the game and is expected to return the Titan program back to their former glory.