By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
A few days before Christmas, the Covington Catholic boys basketball team went across the river to play nationally ranked Cincinnati Moeller and lost by a whopping 20-point margin.
CovCath coach Scott Ruthsatz said he revamped his offensive approach after that to put his players in a position to be more successful and the Colonels opened the new year with an impressive 57-40 win at Newport on Wednesday night.
The defending state champions shot 51 percent (17 of 33) from the field and passed the ball so well that 15 of their 17 baskets came off assists in the victory that lifted their record to 11-4.
“This year we really operate better within a framework of moving the ball side to side,” Ruthsatz said. “Our focus is now on layups and getting open shots and that’s what you saw (Wednesday). We got a layup or a foul or got wide open shots, and that really is due to the unselfishness of the kids moving the ball.”
Newport shot 37.8 percent (14 of 37) from the field and ended up with its lowest point of the season in the loss that dropped the team’s record to 12-3.
The Wildcats were playing without senior forward Mahki McGuire, who is sitting out a two-game suspension after being ejected in a loss to University Heights last Sunday.
McGuire averaged 16.3 points and 5.1 rebounds in Newport’s first 14 games and his teammates had a hard time dealing with CovCath at both ends of the court without him.
“It definitely hurt us playing without a kid who’s been a three-year starter,” said Newport coach Rod Snapp. “But we should have other kids in our program step up and take advantage of those minutes.”
With two minutes remaining in the first quarter, Newport senior guard Donnie Miller turned his right ankle and limped into the locker room with his team trailing by just five points.
By the time Miller returned to the lineup with 2:57 left in the second quarter, CovCath had opened up a 23-9 lead. The Wildcats did run off five straight points to pull within 23-14, but a pair of free throws by CovCath junior guard Jay Jackson made it 25-14 at halftime.
Newport senior forward Tahj Harding scored 14 of his game-high 19 points in the second half, but CovCath executed on offense so well that it maintained a double-digit lead.
“We’re a young team with five first-year (starters), but we’re starting to work together and play more as a team and really click together,” said CovCath senior forward Nick Thelen.
CovCath’s leading scorer was junior guard Grant Disken, who got all 15 of his points in the fourth quarter. Thelen finished with 13 points and Jackson had 11.
The Colonels dominated the boards and finished with a 30-12 rebounding advantage. Thelen snagged a game-high eight rebounds. Junior forward Neil Green had six rebounds, six points, three blocks and three assists.
COVCATH 12 13 15 17 — 57
NEWPORT 4 10 10 16 — 40
COVCATH (11-4): Disken 3 7 15, Moser 1 1 3, Fleek 2 2 6, Thelen 5 3 13, Green 2 2 6, Davin 1 0 3, Jackson 3 2 11. Totals: 17 17 57.
NEWPORT (12-3): White 2 3 8, Miller 3 0 7, Harding 7 4 19, Garland 2 0 6. Totals: 14 7 40.
Three-pointers: CC – Jackson 3, Disken 2, Davin. N – Garland 2, Harding, Miller, White.