By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Two guards who have been supporting players on Covington Catholic’s basketball team for much of the season played key roles in keeping the Colonels in contention for a state title on Friday at Rupp Arena.
In the quarterfinal round of the UK HealthCare/KHSAA “Sweet 16” state tournament, junior Kascyl McGillis and sophomore Brady Hussey scored a combined total of 30 points in CovCath’s dramatic 58-57 win over Lyon County.
McGillis got 12 of his team-high 17 points in the first half that ended with CovCath holding a 32-25 lead. In the final minutes of the fourth quarter, Hussey scored 10 of his 13 points during a final surge the Colonels needed to avoid being upset by the small-school team from western Kentucky.
“Lyon County was well prepared for us and gave us all that we could handle, especially in the second half,” CovCath coach Scott Ruthsatz said after his team’s first two-point win of the season.
“At the end of the day, I’m very proud of my team from the standpoint that it’s survive and advance at this point in time,” the coach added. “We won by two and we get to play tomorrow.”
The match-ups for Saturday’s semifinal games will be George Rogers Clark (35-1) vs. Lincoln County (31-7) at 11 a.m. and CovCath (30-4) vs. Warren Central (28-3) at 1:30 p.m. The winners will return to Rupp Arena for the championship game at 7 p.m.
This is the eighth consecutive time that a Northern Kentucky team has made it to the state final four, excluding the 2020 tournament that was cancelled due to COVID-19 concerns. CovCath reached the semifinals for the fourth time to continue that run. The Colonels won state championships in 2014 and 2018.
It looked like Lyon County might end the area’s semifinal streak when the Lions took a 45-41 lead over CovCath with 6:20 left in the fourth quarter of Friday’s quarterfinal game.
After a tip-in basket by CovCath senior center Mitchell Rylee made it a two-point margin, Hussey scored the Colonels’ next 10 points with two 3-pointers, a jump shot and a layup.
“Those were big shots, especially when it’s a tie ball game and he puts us up three and then he had a layup with a great move to the basket,” Ruthsatz said of the first-year starter.
Hussey’s second trey broke a 50-50 tie and a few seconds later Rylee put down a slam dunk to make it 55-50 with 1:05 remaining.
After the two teams traded baskets, Lyon County sophomore guard Travis Perry buried a 3-pointer to make it 57-55 with 35 seconds remaining. But the Lions had to foul four times to put CovCath at the free throw line and that took the clock down to nine seconds.
CovCath junior guard Evan Ipsaro, who returned to the game after injuring his ankle midway through the fourth quarter, made two clutch free throws to give his team a four-point lead and Lyon County made an uncontested layup before time expired.
Rylee finished with 16 points and 11 rebounds, but Lyon County won the battle on the boards by a 31-26 margin. CovCath outscored the Lions, 24-6, from behind the 3-point line. McGillis had five treys and Hussey had three for the Colonels. The Lions’ leading scorer was Perry with a game-high 21 points.
Ipsaro was limited to eight points, 13 below his average, but he had a game-high six assists and two steals. He’s expected to play in Saturday’s semifinal game even though he was limping after the ankle injury.
COVCATH 15 17 9 18 — 59
LYON COUNTY 13 12 16 16 — 57
COVCATH (30-4): Ipsaro 2 4 8, McGillis 6 0 17, Rylee 7 2 16, Hussey 5 0 13, Starks 0 1 1, Wilson 2 0 4. Totals: 22 7 59.
LYON COUNTY (26-10): Whalin 3 1 7, Reddick 3 3 9, Perry 8 3 21, B. Shoulders 1 0 2, J. Shoulders 4 6 14, Bingham 1 0 2. Gilbert 1 0 2. Totals: 21 13 57.
3-pointers: CC — McGillis 5, Hussey 3. LC — Perry 2.
