By Terry Boehmker
NKyTribune sports reporter
Covington Catholic evened its record against boys basketball teams ranked among the top five in the state and Cooper pulled off a major upset in girls basketball on Saturday.
CovCath (12-2) won a home game against Louisville Male, 70-58, with all five of the Colonels’ starting players scoring in double figures. The team leader was sophomore forward Chandler Starks with 18 points to go along with 12 rebounds, three assists and six steals.
Louisville Male’s Kaleb Glenn (1) attempts a shot while under defensive pressure from CovCath’s Colin McHale (14) on Saturday night. (Photo by Dale Dawn)
CovCath was ranked No. 4 in last week’s Associated Press statewide media poll, while Male was rated No. 5. Last month, the Colonels lost to No. 3 North Laurel, 89-87, in overtime.
In Saturday’s game, CovCath took a 45-35 lead on a 3-point goal by junior forward Colin McHale late in the third quarter. After Male cut the margin to 49-41 early in the fourth quarter, the Colonels scored on five of their next six possessions to pull ahead 59-44 and maintained a double-digit margin to pick up their fifth straight victory.
McHale finished with 12 points and eight assists. CovCath’s other double-figure scorers were sophomore Evan Isparo (16), senior Donovan Stocks (12) and junior Mitchell Rylee (12). The Colonels shot 52.8 percent (28 of 53) from the field compared to Male’s 56.8 (25 of 44) percent, but the Bulldogs committed 17 turnovers.
Male (2-1) had played only two games prior to meeting CovCath. Due to the pandemic, public schools in the Louisville area had the start of the season postponed until Feb. 1 by the Jefferson County School Board.
Earlier this week, the Cooper girls team had two games canceled due to pandemic precautions, but that didn’t seem to affect the Jaguars on Saturday when they upset Louisville Sacred Heart, 53-51, in the Statewide Mortgage Valentine Shootout at Louisville Butler.
In last week’s Associated Press statewide media poll, Sacred Heart was voted No. 2 and Cooper didn’t get enough points to crack the top 10. This was Cooper’s third game against a highly ranked team. Last month, the Jaguars lost to No. 1 Anderson County, 67-32, and defeated No. 9 Notre Dame, 40-27.
Cooper sophomore forward Whitney Lind had 20 points and eight rebounds in the win over Sacred Heart and surpassed the 1,000 mark in career scoring. Her freshman teammate, Logan Palmer, finished with 11 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
The victory lifted the Jaguars’ record to 9-2. They have won five straight games since their loss to Anderson County. Last season, Cooper finished with a 9-19 record. This year’s team has a chance to surpass that win total Wednesday when the Jaguars visit Grant County.
Louisville Male’s Cameron Pope (left) is defended by CovCath’s Chandler Starks. (Photo by Dale Dawn)
CovCath’s Donovan Stocks (5) drives to the basket against Louisville Male. (Photo by Dale Dawn)
Louisville Male’s Cameron Pope drives to the basket against CovCath on Saturday night. (Photo by Dale Dawn)
