No. 1 St. Xavier takes down No. 2 Covington Catholic in blockbuster Sweet 16Ⓡ opener
The No. 1 St. Xavier Tigers defeated the No. 2 Covington Catholic Colonels 75-61 in the opening game of the UK HealthCare Boys’ Basketball Sweet 16Ⓡ on Wednesday in Rupp Arena.
St. Xavier finished 12-of-18 from deep with point guard Chief Cameron getting in the paint, drawing defenders, and kicking to wide-open teammates. Cameron finished with 14 points, six assists, and four steals. Super sophomore Josh Lindsay (a highly ranked recruit) led the way with 21 points on 5-of-6 shooting from downtown. He added a pair of high-flying dunks. Bryce Johnson was a perfect 4-of-4 from downtown for 12 points, eight points higher than his season average.
St. Xavier coach Kevin Klein said the gameplan was to penetrate and kick, citing that they consider a wide-open three to be the equivalent of a layup.
“What an opening game of this tournament. We knew it was going to be a heavyweight fight and a game of runs. We knew when we got to the paint we had to look for shooters.” Coach Klein said postgame.
In a game worthy of a state championship, the Tigers fell behind early before going on a crucial 24-7 run to end the second quarter to take a 41-35 lead into the locker room. After back-to-back Dylan Gaiser buckets pushed the Colonels’ lead to 28-17, the Tigers went on a tear. Bryce Johnson knocked down four first-half triples, including back-to-back ones to give St. Xavier a 36-33 lead.
The Tigers came out hot to start the second half, with Cameron getting in the lane with ease and scoring or assisting on the first four Tiger baskets. He set up Lindsay on back-to-back triples to extend the lead to 54-41.
“Chief Cameron is a really special player for them. He’s their glue,” said Covington Catholic coach Jake Thelen.
The Colonels forced a Tiger timeout when Braeden Myrick swished a triple from the top of the key to trim the Tiger lead to 61-55 with 3:51 remaining in the fourth quarter. Covington Catholic would get no closer though, with Jordan Jackson and Lindsay each throwing down dunks to punctuate the victory.
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Klein cited the Tigers maintaining their composure despite being down by double-digits in the second quarter.
“We have a big motto we go by, our best is always in the future. We just stayed the course and kept believing and kept trusting one another.”
Jordan Jackson (10 points, 7 rebounds, 3 blocks) and Connor Klein (12 points) also finished in double-figures, with Jackson’s inside defense and energy sparking the Tigers during the crucial run.
“He’s like the Energizer Bunny,” Coach Klein said after the game.
Myrick led the Colonels with 19 points. Athens McGillis (11 points), Gaiser (10), and Teegan Stave (10) also finished in double figures. Donovan Bradshaw, the Colonels’ lone big man, battled inside, finishing with eight points and a game-high 11 boards
Next Up:
No. 1 St. Xavier (27-7) will take on the winner of No. 4 Warren Central (26-3) and No. 10 North Laurel (28-7) on Friday, March 20, at 11:00 AM at Rupp Arena.
No. 2 Covington Catholic (31-3) ends a fantastic season with only three losses. They led the state in scoring margin and were second in points per game and field goal percentage.
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