If only Covington Catholic could’ve wiped away Sunday’s first six minutes and 25 seconds.
La Lumiere School turned those 385 seconds into a 19-0 lead, and the Lakers returned to their LaPorte, Indiana home with a 74-60 win in the Griffin Elite Basketball Classic.
What impressed CovCath coach Scott Ruthsatz most: the Colonels outscored the Lakers, ranked 13th nationally in the highschool.si.com poll, over the final three quarters, 53-50.
“The kids just played tremendous after that,” Ruthsatz said of the deficit. “Once we got to the second quarter, we started hitting some shots, we started settling down, moving the ball better.”
Thank the Colonels’ Caden Miller, Brady Hussey and Cash Harney. Miller and Hussey scored 14 points each, and Harney added 10.
The 6-foot-9 Miller said being left-handed helped him against La Lumiere 7-footer Steve Solano.
“I think it’s an advantage that people don’t know about it.”
The Colonels (6-2), however, had no answer for La Lumiere’s Darius Adams – his 25 points included 6-of-8 from 3-point range. Jerry Easter II was next with 16 points, and Melvin Bell added 12.
With college coaches from Toledo, Northern Kentucky, Dayton, Thomas More, Eastern Kentucky, Louisville, Coastal Carolina and others, Griffin Elite looked like something you’d find on the summer AAU circuit.
What the coaches saw in the first six-plus minutes: Adams’ six points, Easter’s six, Ace Buckner’s five and Solano’s dunk.
“We do talk about throwing the first punch quite a bit and setting the tone early in the game,” La Lumiere assistant coach Brian Tonino said.
And CovCath?
“We just couldn’t get a stop,” Ruthsatz said. “And we were unorganized on offense.”
Hussey said as much.
“We’ve got to stay under control and not get caught up in their stuff,” he said.
Miller started CovCath’s comeback with a bucket with 1:35 to go in the first quarter, which Hussey followed with a 3 and Harney’s layup.
The greater accomplishment, at least for Miller: forcing La Lumiere (9-1) into using a smaller lineup.
“I learned that you’ve got to be more physical and you can’t let them rush you,” Miller said. “I’ve got to stick to my stuff, stick to what I know.”
The Colonels’ biggest run, a 13-2 string over the final 3:12 of the half, featured Athens McGillis eight points, Hussey’s three and Miller’s dunk. The result: CovCath pulled to within 38-29 at intermission.
La Lumiere (9-1) rebounded by outscoring CovCath, 22-12, in the third quarter.
“You learn so much in the December games, you learn so much in the January games,” Ruthsatz said. “You take those experiences and you fine tune your team as you move through February and you get into district and region play.”
LAKERS 74, COLONELS 60
LA LUMIERE — 24-14-22-14 — 74
COVINGTON CATHOLIC — 7-22-12-19 — 60
Scoring
LA LUMIERE (74) —Easter 16, Bell 12, Adams 25, Murray 1, Buckner 11, Solano 9
COV. CATHOLIC (60) —McGillis 8, Harney 10, Miller 14, Johnson 5, Hussey 14, Ruthsatz 9
Game Stats
Field Goals: LL 30/56, CC 25/54
3-Pointers: LL 7/12, CC 7/17
Free Throws: LL 7/11, CC 3/7
Rebounds: LL 40, CC 17
Assists: LL 12, CC 9
Turnovers: LL 20, CC 13
Records: La Lumiere 9-1, CovCath 6-2