Cougars Claw Chargers

HOT SPRINGS — Defense creates offense.
It’s what Casey Burks preaches.
Monday night, the sermon caught hold in the second half.
Covington forced 13 Bath County turnovers in the final two quarters, broke a halftime deadlock and defeated Bath County, 73-57, in a Pioneer District boys basketball game.
Jacob Roldan and Javier Yancey both rang up 20 points apiece for the Cougars, while Jabari Williams added 12 points and 18 rebounds.
“Defense, the first half, no defense,” Burks said. “Defense turns into offense for us. The last couple games that’s been our bread and butter. We came out with a little more energy in the second half.”
Tied at 32-all, Covington outscored the Chargers 19-8 in the first seven minutes of the third quarter.
“I thought our game plan was effective,” said BCHS coach Justin Whittington. “We chose to go big tonight. But they have a deeper bench than we do. I thought we got tired.”
Sean Flenner scored 29 hard-earned points to lead Bath County.
It was Yancey that drew the defensive assignment on Flenner.
“Javier is a great defender,” Burks said. “He’s going to make you earn every single point.”
Jayden Ryder added seven points for Bath County, while Connor Call had a team-high eight rebounds.
—————————————————————————————————————————————Covington’s Javier Yancey (14) guards Bath County’s Sean Flenner Monday night. (Gavin Dressler Photo)