Cooper High School Punches Sweet 16 Ticket with Coach's Future in Jeopardy

Emotions ran high in Tuesday night’s Region 9 Championship at Truist Arena, and it’s not just because Cooper was seeking its second-ever appearance in the KHSAA Sweet 16.

Two weeks ago, head coach Tim Sullivan’s wife, Andrea, shared on Facebook that his bosses at Cooper gave him an ultimatum. He could resign at the end of the season or they would let his contract expire. Their alleged reasoning? “He didn’t have a sense of urgency to improve the culture of the program.”

The controversy consumed the Cooper community, which rallied behind Sullivan’s basketball program. Many fans in the stands wore “Sully” shirts in the stands, which rang out in cheers of “Keep the Culture.”

The culture was good enough for Cooper to completely overwhelm its opponent in the Region 9 title game. The Jaguars led 35-17 early in the third quarter, and Lloyd Memorial was never able to get within 14 points.

Cooper took home the Region 9 Title in a 53-58 victory. Roman Combs led Cooper in scoring, sinking all five shots to score 13 points. His brother, Jaidan Combs, tallied 10 points in the win.

After the win, Sullivan was grateful for the support from his community. More importantly, he was proud of his players for keeping their focus throughout the difficult final stretch of the season.

“The ability to ignore the noise… It’s not about one of us. It’s about all of us,” Sullivan said after securing the win. “I understand there’s a lot of noise around our program right now. It concerns me, but this group, they have — I’m at a loss of words because of how they’ve come together, the way they’ve stayed focused on what we’re trying to do, and continue trusting one another. They’re pouring their hearts into the program.”

It’s unclear if Cooper’s success will change the minds of school officials. One thing is certain, that school is dominating athletics in Northern Kentucky. The girls’ team won its fourth-straight Region 9 Title and advanced to the Sweet 16 quarterfinals before being ousted by eventual champ, Sacred Heart. The boys’ basketball team had three players who were a part of the football team that finished its season in the Class 6A State Championship Game.

Cooper advances to Rupp Arena to play Region 2 champion Henderson County next Thursday at 8 p.m. The final two Sweet 16 tickets will be punched tonight.

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