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Matt McCord scored a game-high 25 points for the Buccs in their 57-47 loss at the hands of Milton Union.
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Team
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CCC
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ALL
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*Twin Valley South
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9-2
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17-3
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*Franklin Monroe
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9-2
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16-4
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*National Trail
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9-2
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15-5
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*Tri-Village
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9-2
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14-6
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Ansonia
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7-4
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10-10
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Tri-County North
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6-5
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12-8
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Mississinawa Valley
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4-7
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8-12
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Arcanum
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4-7
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7-13
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Newton
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4-7
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5-15
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Covington
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3-7
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3-17
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Bethel
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2-9
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3-17
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Bradford
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0-11
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0-20
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January 4, 2003 – COVINGTON
The Covington Buccaneers had one of their better shooting nights of the season, but unfortunately for the Buccs, Milton Union shot better. The result was a 57-47 victory for the Bulldogs on the Buccaneers' home floor.
Milton jumped out to an early 12-4 lead as they employed the full-court press on the Buccaneers. Covington was able to break the press midway through the first period and closed the Bulldog' lead to 15-10 at the end of the quarter.
Neither team could find much of an advantage in the second period. The Bulldogs maintained a 4-point lead with under a minute to go in the period until a Matt McCord 3-pointer closed the gap to 23-22 at the half.
"Covington gave us some problems early on with the Triangle Two defense," described Milton Union coach, Tom Koogler. "We made some adjustments and were able to capitalize on some turnovers and get some easy baskets."
The third period was where Milton Union was able to make their run. The Bulldogs scored three straight baskets to take a 7-point lead. Covington again battled back and eventually closed the gap to 36-35, forcing the Bulldogs to take a timeout.
The next four minutes determined the outcome of the game.
Milton regrouped and went on a 10-0 run in sparked by a steal and lay-in by Senior guard, David Delk. The Buccaneers then called a timeout of their own to regroup, but the Bulldogs were able to maintain their 11-point lead throughout the third period, 46-35.
"That was a critical point in the game for us when they closed within one," said coach Koogler. "I told the kids during the timeout that we needed to spread the floor a little bit and move the ball. We changed our set and opened the floor and took what their defense would give us. That's when Casey (Woodell) got hot and a couple of other guys hit a couple of shots. It was that four minutes that made the difference for us."
That 10-0 run in four minutes also left an impression on Covington's coach, Roger Craft.
"Those four minutes of the third period killed us," commented coach Craft. "We cut their lead to one, then turn the ball over a few times and the next thing we know, we're playing catch-up again."
Although trailing by 11 to start the fourth period, the Buccs didn't fold. Covington's Matt McCord kept the Buccaneers within striking distance throughout the second half by connecting on 10 of his game high 25 points in the final period.
Covington just couldn't handle the pressure of Milton Union's three quick guards, mainly David Delk. Delk jumped into Buccaneer' passing lanes on numerous occasions, which resulted in lay-ups on the other end of the court and a 57-47 victory for the Bulldogs.
"Delk is one of the quickest guards we'll see all season," mentioned coach Craft. "He's just as quick, if not quicker than the guard they have at Marion Local, Chad Otte."
Delk may be the ring leader, but the Bulldogs showed they are more than a one man show.
"We have some nice guards," complemented coach Koogler. "We realize that with our quickness we don't really have to play a full-court press all of the time. We can play our half-court defense and still force some turnovers. We just lack size under the basket and sometimes that hurts us, but tonight we played bigger than we are. Woodell hit some big shots for us and our defense forced some turnovers. This was a nice weekend for us."
Coach Craft saw some positives that the Buccs can build on for the rest of the season, namely Matt McCord.
"I'm pleased with the way Matt McCord played tonight," said coach Craft. "Matt was fun to watch. He was aggressive taking the ball to the basket and he finished off plays. That's what we need from him. Now we need to get some more guys to step up and make some plays as well."
The Buccs drop to 2-8 on the season while Milton Union improves to 3-7.
Covington Scoring:
Matt McCord – 25
Dallas Burelison – 2
Darin Rhoades – 3
Ross Mohler – 7
Tyler Moore – 4
Dustin Kimmel – 2
Matt Maier – 4
Total: 47
Milton Union Scoring:
Delk – 9
Woodell – 19
Roy – 4
Gilbert – 13
Circle – 5
Rembold – 2
Randall – 5
Total: 57
Total: 51
Scoring by Quarters:
Covington........10.......22......35......47
Milton Union.....15.......23......46......57
Reserves: Covington 48, Milton 23
