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Jarod Meyer knocked down 17 points for the Buccs in their 73-53 win over Milton.
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Team
Covington
Bethel
Tri-County North
Tri-Village
Twin Valley South
Newton
Franklin Monroe
Arcanum
National Trail
Ansonia
Mississinawa Valley
Bradford
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CCC
9-2
9-2
9-2
9-2
8-3
6-5
5-6
4-7
3-8
2-9
2-9
0-11
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ALL
16-4
16-4
16-4
14-6
15-5
10-10
9-11
5-15
5-15
4-16
3-17
0-20
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January 5, 2002 – WEST MILTON
The Buccs finished off their first weekend of 2002 with another big win over a game opponent in the Milton Bulldogs. They did it by going into a hostile environment and playing solid defense and opportunistic offense. The Bulldog's student section was rowdy but nothing phased the Buccs. Not even the fan who interrupted play by running onto the floor and out of the building late in the game.
The night started off in a similarly strange manner. Milton shot two free throws that were the result of a technical foul on the Buccs for a player grabbing the rim during warm-ups. Milton missed both free throws which may have been a sign of how things would go for the Bulldogs the rest of the night. Derick Brumbaugh got the Buccs rolling with a lay-up to begin the scoring. Jarod Meyer and Jason Meyer both nailed a jumper an a 3-pointer as the Buccs jumped out to an early lead. Milton battled back to finish the period strong and lead at the end of the first by the score of 15-14.
Brumbaugh again got the Buccs going in the second with a jumper and the Buccs never trailed the rest of the night. Jason Meyer hit two jumpers while Jarod Meyer drilled a 3-pointer along with a Josh Burelison lay-up to push the Buccs lead to 31-21. Another Burelison jumper and a 3-pointer gave the Buccs a 38-21 lead at the half.
The Buccs pushed their lead to 21-points with 5:00 to go in the third behind the sharp-shooting of Jarod Meyer. Milton tried to cut into the Buccs lead but Josh Burelison knocked down two jumpers to keep the Buccs lead to 17 at the end of the third.
After a Milton basket to start the fourth, Jason Meyer canned a 3-pointer and Bert Roeth dropped in 4 more points to push the Buccs lead to 60-38. Milton made a slim comeback to cut the Buccs' lead to 66-51 with about 2:00 to go but Josh Burelison knocked down a jumper and a 3-pointer while Jason Meyer hit on a jumper of his own to give the Buccs the 73-53 win.
The win gives the Buccs a 10-2 record on the season. The Buccs return home next weekend for games against Tri-Village and Versailles. The Buccs will look to increase their momentum next weekend as they go into their much anticipated showdown with Bethel on January 18.
Scoring Breakdown:
Jason Meyer – 24
Josh Burelison – 18
Jarod Meyer – 17
Bert Roeth – 10
Derick Brumbaugh – 4
Rebounding:
Jason Meyer – 10
Jarod Meyer – 6
Josh Bureliosn – 3
Clint Mohler – 3
Bert Roeth – 3
Derick Brumbaugh – 2
Alex Hague – 2
Pure...Shooter!
After a recent 5th Quarter show, the topic in the studio turned to shooting...or more accurately, the lack of it...in high school basketball. In fact, when pressed...our panel of four, including one area coach, could not name as many as three players in Miami County and surrounding districts that one could classify as a good, "pure" shooter. Make this distinction. There are scorers out there playing at Bethel, at Russia, in Covington and some other area schools, but their percentage and consistency falls below the criteria by which you would classify them as pure shooters. When you compare points-per-game average, percentage and the dedication to the craft of shooting the basketball, the Buccs' Jason Meyer stands alone as the area's best "pure" shooter.
Jason Meyer comes from good basketball stock. His grandfather Joe played for the Buccs during the 40's and father Jay played for Bob Huelsman from '75 through '77. In fact, Jay Meyer is one of only three Covington scorers to have amassed 500 points during a single season...the other two being Tom Dunn and Lane Evans. Entering the current season Jason found himself fourteen points shy of his father's career mark of 1,000 points scored, a mark he eclipsed in the opening game at Arcanum. Like everything else he's accomplished in basketball, Jason has done it quietly...almost shyly...and without the fanfare sought by so many athletes of this day. Like his jumpshot, Jason's attitude towards the game of basketball has been pure.
"When we show grade-school kids how to shoot the basketball, we like to use Jason's example," said coach Roger Craft earlier this year after Jason had scored his one-thousandth point. "His hand position, his release and consistency are that good. Even on nights when he's a little bit off...his mechanics are so good that we know it's bound to fall if he keeps shooting."
One of the area's best authorities on shooting the basketball is former Piqua coach, Dave Zeller who maintains that being a good shooter in basketball has lost out to other "distractions" with today's teenagers. "Being a good shooter comes from dedication and the desire to place practice before everything else," says Zeller, "...and very few kids today are willing to make that kind of commitment."
Consistency and skill do not come easily. Jason Meyer has taken hundreds of thousands of shots over the years and like other good shooters before him, it's a never-ending quest for perfection. It's not unusual to find him in the gym after practice or on a Sunday, constantly honing the release of that pure jumpshot. Summer AAU ball, countless pickup games and solitary practice on a hoop in the driveway have all contributed towards the skill and precision necessary to earn Jason a Division I scholarship to Dartmouth next season...that and a near-perfect ACT score.
"Jason's attitude about school...and his competitiveness for scholastic achievement are totally consistent with what he's done in basketball," added Craft. "He's as close to the total package as I can imagine."
To be sure, Jason's record at Covington has been aided in a large part by the contributions of other good players...the likes of Bert Roeth, Josh Burelison and his cousin, Jarod Meyer, all three good "scorers" in their own right. But night in and night out, when other teams prepare to play Covington their focus is squarely on #22 and his impact on the ultimate outcome of the game. Like any good scorer, amassing a thousand points is all the more remarkable when one considers the lengths opponents go to in shutting down a good shooter.
"They're all such good shooters (at Covington) it's hard to focus just on Jason," said Arcanum coach Richard Cline recently. "The best thing you can do is make sure you don't give up the game to stop one player...because if you do, someone you overlook is bound to pick it up and beat you. Jason's just the centerpiece of a great collection."
The Buccs enter the stretch run of the 2001'02 season over the next two weekends with some tough opponents. Versailles, Bethel, Twin Valley South and Miami East all loom on the horizon...all good teams and all with a focus on the Covington Buccs and stopping Jason Meyer.
"We really respect Covington because of their ability and their quality image," says Bethel and ex-Covington coach Steve Fisher. "Any time we play them, it's a special opportunity because of players like Jason." From coach Fisher, that's "pure" respect for one of the area's...and state's....best!
The FanFile
