CovCath handles Highlands; NCC bests Villa Madonna

G. Michael Graham Photo. Highlands guard Bailey Witte (12) sets up for a free throw in Monday's game against Covington Catholic. Witte scored eight points in the loss to the Colonels.

By G. MICHAEL GRAHAM

Fort Thomas Matters Sports Reporter

It turned out to be a bad mix.

The struggling Highlands Bluebirds boys basketball team welcomed the confident Covington Catholic Colonels to Fort Thomas on Monday for its first home game since defeating Bellevue on Dec. 8. The Colonels left with a convincing 78-38 victory when the dust settled.

The loss left Highlands at 6-10 overall. The Bluebirds have lost four straight and eight of their last 11 contests. They are 3-5 against 9th Region opponents.

The visitors improved to 15-2. The Colonels have won nine of their last 10 games with the only loss coming to Covington Holmes, 71-60 on Jan. 8.

“We really struggled passing and catching the ball,” said Mike Flynn, Highlands head coach. “We don’t have a player who really looks confident getting us a bucket. When you play a team like CovCath that has many players who can score the ball, you’re in for a long night. That’s what happened.”

Covington Catholic took 15 more shots than Highlands in the game thanks to solid man-to-man pressure defense. The Bluebirds turned the ball over 20 times to eight for the Colonels. CovCath recorded 13 steals to one for Highlands.

The Colonels then saw 11 different players score. Nick Ruthsatz led the way with 16 points and four steals. Nick Fredrick followed with three three-pointers on the way to 13 points and Zach Tobler scored 10.

Nine different Bluebirds scored. But no one hit double-digits. Bailey Witte led the way with eight points.

CovCath made 27-of-54 shots for 50 percent, including six three-pointers. The Colonels also made 14-of-20 free throws for 70 percent.

Highlands made 13-of-39 shots for 33percent, including just one three-pointer by Luke Turner. The Bluebirds also made just 7-of-16 free throws for 44 percent.

The Colonels scored a jackpot of 20 points in each of the first three quarter to build a 60-26 advantage. Many of the faithful on the home side of the court departed at that point.

Drew Houliston hit a jumper for the game’s first two points for Highlands. But the Colonels used an 8-0 run and never looked back. They extended the margin to 18-5 after a 10-0 run highlighted by the first of two Bo Schuh dunks.

Highlands will look to get back in the win column on Thursday against Campbell County (7-10) in Fort Thomas. Game time is 8 p.m.

All “A” 9^th Region First Round at Dayton
 

NCC boys 79, Villa Madonna 39

The Thoroughbreds (14-2) easily advanced past the Blue Lightning (8-9) on Monday to open the All “A” 9th Region Tournament at Dayton.

Michael Bueter led Newport Central Catholic with 27 points. NewCath has won two in a row since the two-game losing streak.

The Thoroughbreds face host Bellevue to continue the tournament at 6 p.m. Wednesday.