By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
After his team lost a 73-68 shootout with Holy Cross in early January, Covington Catholic boys’ basketball coach Scott Ruthsatz made some defensive adjustments and devoted more practice time to that phase of the game. The Colonels have won 15 consecutive games since then and several of those victories were by such large margins that they’ve climbed to No. 1 in state power ratings.
CovCath should remain the state’s top-ranked team after a 62-41 win over Holy Cross in the 35th District championship game on Saturday showed just how much the Colonels have improved on defense since their last setback.
Holy Cross was averaging 63.1 points and shooting 47 percent from the field coming into Saturday’s game. But the Indians shot 34.8 percent (15 of 43) and were held to their lowest point total of the season in the rematch with CovCath.
“They have (improved) and obviously it’s on the defensive end,” said Holy Cross coach Ryan Schrand. “They’re shutting people down. You look at their box scores and they’ve been holding people to 30 and 40 points. We didn’t play real well, but you’ve got to give CovCath credit. Their defense was great.”
Both of the district finalists will be in the eight-team field for next week’s 9th Region tournament at Northern Kentucky University’s BB&T Arena. CovCath won the regional title the last two years and has established itself as the favorite once again
by winning 15 straight games.
The commitment CovCath’s players have made to getting after opponents on defense reminds their coach of the team that won the 2014 state championship.
“Defense is what helped us a couple years ago, just being able to stop teams,” Ruthsatz said. “I think we’re pretty effective scoring (this season) so if we just take some pride in defense I think that can take us a long way again.”
The Colonels jumped out to a 15-4 lead in Saturday’s game and extended the margin to 33-19 by halftime. They continued to pull away in the second half without senior forward Andy Flood in the lineup. He crashed to the floor with 5:15 left in the second quarter and showed signs of having a concussion, according to coach Ruthsatz.
CovCath’s offensive standout was junior guard Cole VonHandorf, who scored a game-high 29 points with 15 coming in the second half. He swished a couple of 3-point shots, but most of his points came from attacking the basket. He was 8-for-12 on two-point attempts and 7-for-9 from the foul line.
The team’s other double-figure scorer was sophomore point guard Aiden Ruthsatz, the head coach’s son, with 12 points. Sophomore forward A.J. Mayer finished with nine points, 11 rebounds and six steals.
VonHandorf was named most valuable player on the district all-tournament team because he also did a good job on defense. He guarded Holy Cross forward Tyler Bezold for much of the game and held him to six points, 10 below his season average.
“That was kind of my role freshman year, face guarding people,” VonHandorf said. “I’m kind of picking it back up this season and taking pride in it.”
The rest of the CovCath players have the same mindset. That’s why their team is allowing 47.5 points per game, one of the lowest defensive averages in the state.
“What we discussed was the only way we’re going to get beat is for a team to really shoot well from the 3 (point line),” coach Ruthsatz said. “So we’re playing the percentages, forcing teams to make outside shots by not giving them easy shots inside.”
That defensive strategy has carried the Colonels to 15 straight wins and a 26-6 record going into the regional playoffs. VonHandorf said it’s been the key to the young team’s success.
“People don’t really realize it, but that’s what wins games,” he said. “It’s not points, it’s (defensive) stops.”
COVCATH 15 18 11 18 — 62
HOLY CROSS 9 10 6 16 — 41
COVCATH (26-6): Fredrick 1 4 6, VonHandorf 10 7 29, Sweeney 0 2 2, Massie 2 0 4, Mayer 3 3 9, Ruthsatz 3 5 12. Totals: 19 21 62.
HOLY CROSS (22-8): N. Schrand 3 4 13, Jacobowski 1 0 3, Scott 2 2 6, L. Schrand 5 0 10, Bezold 3 0 6, Barnes 1 1 3. Totals: 15 7 41.
3-point goals: CC – VonHandorf 2, Ruthsatz. HC – N. Schrand 3, Jabowski.
ALL-TOURNAMENT TEAM
CovCath – Cole VonHandorf (MVP), Aiden Ruthsatz, A.J. Mayer. Holy Cross – Leighton Schrand, Hamilton Scott. Holmes – Brandon Moore. Beechwood – J.T. Toebbe.