By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Getting outscored 36-6 from 3-point range usually spells trouble for a basketball team, but Covington Catholic was able to overcome that disparity in the first round of the UK HealthCare/KHSAA “Sweet 16” boys state tournament on Thursday at Rupp Arena.
The Colonels defeated Ashland Blazer, 76-65, by scoring 50 points in the paint, including five second-chance baskets off rebounds, to offset their opponent’s long-range shooting before a crowd of 9,840 that was listed for the final first-round session.
If the Colonels (29-4) win their quarterfinal game against Lyon County (29-6) at 6 p.m. Friday, it will be the eighth consecutive time that a Northern Kentucky team has made it to the boys state semifinals, excluding the 2020 tournament that was cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns.
CovCath trailed, 40-33, at halftime of Thursday’s game, but the Colonels shot 63 percent (14 of 22) from the field and played much better defense in the final two quarters to outscore Ashland by 18 points.
The Tomcats shot 36 percent (9 of 25) in the second half, connecting on just five of 15 3-point attempts. In the first half, they shot 69 percent (16 of 23) and knocked down seven of 12 treys.
“We challenged the guys at halftime,” said CovCath coach Scott Ruthsatz. “You’ve got to be much more physical, we’ve got to be much more aggressive and can we please protect the 3-point line as they were shooting 7 of 12 from there. We knew they could shoot and we were just giving them too many wide open shots.”
Following their coach’s commands, the Colonels outscored Ashland, 20-12, in the third quarter to take a 53-52 lead and then started the fourth quarter with a 7-0 run to make it 60-52. In the final three minutes, junior guard Evan Ipsaro scored 10 of his game-high 26 points to secure the team’s 11th consecutive win since losing to Ashland, 70-61, on Jan. 29.
CovCath ended up shooting 66.7 percent (30 of 45) for the game compared to Ashland’s 50 percent (24 of 48). The Colonels’ size advantage also resulted in a 30-12 rebounding margin.
Ipsaro got most of his nine field goals on drives to the basket. Junior forward Chandler Starks had 21 points and 12 rebounds with most of his baskets also coming in the paint. Senior guard Mekhi Wilson scored eight of his 15 points on layups and senior center Mitchell Rylee dunked three of his five field goals.
The leading scorers for Ashland were guards Cole Villers with 25 points and Colin Porter with 18. After getting 16 points in the first half, Villers made only three shots in the second half when Wilson was guarding him.
“I thought the energy that we had defensively in the second half was the difference in the game,” coach Ruthsatz said.
The Colonels now have a 11-2 record in state tournament games under Ruthsatz, who is the first coach to win six 9th Region boys basketball titles. His teams claimed state championships in 2014 and 2018 and made it to the semifinals in 2015.
CovCath teams have compiled a 309-67 record under Ruthsatz for a 82.1 winning percentage. The program’s only coach with more wins was Dan Tieman, who had a 313-146 record when he retired in 2000.
UK HEALTH CARE/KHSAA “SWEET 16” STATE TOURNAMENT
(all games at Rupp Arena, Lexington)
Friday, March 18
Lincoln County (30-7) vs. North Oldham (20-12), 11 a.m.
George Rogers Clark (34-1) vs. Pikeville (31-2), 1:30 p.m.
Lyon County (29-6) vs. Covington Catholic (29-4), 6 p.m.
Warren Central (27-3) vs. Murray (26-6), 8:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 19
Semifinal games, 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.
Championship game, 7 p.m.
