Riverside overcomes fatigue to down Covington, 77-60

WESTWEGO, La. – A pair of words beginning with “f” were a bit of an issue for unbeaten Riverside Tuesday afternoon.

After a slow start, Riverside got it going en route to a 77-60 victory over Covington in the opening round of the Allstate Sugar Bowl National Prep Classic at The Alario Center Tuesday afternoon.

“We are obviously fatigued and I’m worried about a possible flu bug,” said Riverside head coach Timmy Byrd. “We are worn down. Our guys are just tired. You can tell. It was good to get a win. It was good to play a lot of guys and that’s what it’s about, getting better.”

The Rebels, who have won all four tournaments they have played in previously, are coming off of a draining tournament victory in the Sunkist Shootout in Lafayette.

Covington started well, closing the first quarter on an 8-0 run to take a 14-12 lead by the end of the period.

Alabama signee Jared Butler, who went scoreless in the first quarter, scored 10 points in the second quarter to spark the Rebels to a 37-30 halftime lead.

Jalen Banks recorded a double-double for the Rebels with 11 points and 10 rebounds.

“Jalen has been shooting it well, he’s active, played with energy and I thought he played well tonight,” Byrd said.

Butler and Isaiah Bigham led a balanced Riverside attack with 16 points each.

“He is clearly not at 100 percent,” Byrd said. “His knee has been bothering him but we have to play him, he wants to play and he is still good but it is obvious that he is not getting lift or the usual explosion off the dribble. Isaiah played well.”

Garland Robertson added 12 points for the Rebels (19-0). Elgin Bell topped Covington (10-5) with 19 points while Reggie Gause had 11 points and eight rebounds.

Riverside made ten 3-pointers and forced 19 Covington turnovers. The Rebels dominated on the boards with a 42-26 advantage.

Riverside advances to face the winner of the University High vs. Dunham game Thursday at 7 p.m.

“It’s going to be a tough game coming up,” Byrd said. “Both are good teams. We will have to be on our game to emerge victorious.”

Final
RA 12 25 22 18 77
COV 14 16 14 16 60

Scoring
RA—Jared Butler 16, Isaiah Bigham 16, Garland Robertson 12, Gage Larvadian 8, Jordan Loving 4, Andre Murphy 2, Dejuan Daniels 2, Tairyn Lockhart 1

COV—Elgin Bell 19, Reggie Gause 11, Sheldon Baham 7, Latroy Walker 5, Jaydon Carter 5, Jeremiah Driver 4, Jaylon Carter 2

Results from Tuesday, Jan. 2 at Allstate Sugar Bowl National Prep Classic

Boys

Sophie B. Wright 64, Jehovah-Jireh 46

Riverside 77, Covington 60

University 67, Dunham 57

Helen Cox 70, Madison Prep 62

Landry-Walker 67, Country Day 36