The bracket for the King of the Bluegrass Holiday Classic was released Tuesday, and there’s a notable team missing from the boys basketball event.

Warren Central, which won the King of the Bluegrass last year on its way to capturing the state championship, elected not to participate and has been replaced by DeSales.

Warren Central lost four of five starters from last season’s team but still was ranked No. 4 in the state in The Courier Journal’s preseason poll of coaches released Monday.

Warren Central coach William Unseld said his son, Kade, recently had minor knee surgery to repair a torn meniscus and will be out until January. The King of the Bluegrass is set for Dec. 19-23 at Fairdale High School.

Kade Unseld, a 6-foot-6 guard, recently signed with Western Kentucky University and is the No. 2-ranked player in the state in The CJ’s preseason rankings.

“He was the MVP last year, and that’s why we were coming back,” William Unseld said. “Without him, we just have a bunch of younger guys and I didn’t think it was fair to the KOB to come without him. I told (tournament director Lloyd Gardner) that we’d still come if he couldn’t find anyone else.”

The coach said he expects Warren Central to be in the running for the Fourth Region title once the Dragons get healthy. Elijah Starks, a transfer from Bowling Green, is expected to be eligible to play for the Dragons after Christmas.

“We’re going to be really good once January 1 gets here,” William Unseld said.

The King of the Bluegrass will feature nine of the top 25 teams in The CJ’s preseason poll — No. 2 Great Crossing, No. 3 Trinity, No. 5 Frederick Douglass, No. 6 Male, No. 7 Bowling Green, No. 9 Newport, No. 14 DeSales, No. 18 Harlan County and No. 24 Washington County.

No. 1 Lyon County and University of Kentucky commit Travis Perry were invited but chose instead to play in the City of Palms Classic in Fort Myers, Florida.

Fairdale, Taylor County, Spencer County, North Oldham and Butler County are the other Kentucky schools in the field. Little Rock (Arkansas) Central and Chicago De La Salle are the out-of-state participants.

Here is the schedule:

Tuesday, Dec. 19 – Spencer County vs. Male, 4:30 p.m.; Taylor County vs. Fairdale, 6 p.m.; North Oldham vs. Great Crossing, 7:30 p.m.; DeSales vs. Frederick Douglass, 9 p.m.

Wednesday, Dec. 20 – Chicago De La Salle vs. Little Rock Central, 4:30 p.m.; Washington County vs. Newport, 6 p.m.; Harlan County vs. Bowling Green, 7:30 p.m.; Butler County vs. Trinity, 9 p.m.

Thursday, Dec. 21 – Games in two gyms at 4:30, 6, 7:30 and 9 p.m.

Friday, Dec. 22 – Games in two gyms at 4:30, 6, 7:30 and 9 p.m.

Saturday, Dec. 23 – Consolation final, 3 p.m.; fifth-place game, 4:30 p.m.; third-place game, 6 p.m.; championship, 7:30 p.m.

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Reach Jason Frakes at jfrakes@courier-journal.com and follow him on X @kyhighs.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: King of the Bluegrass 2023: Warren Central boys basketball opts out