Bottomline, CVG is not NYC. The $800 - $900 roundtrip Main fares ($600 - $700 Basic Economy) you are seeing now out of CVG are unlikely to get any lower than that. Fares out of NYC are currently about $200 roundtrip lower than that, but I wouldn't expect NYC fares to ever appear out of CVG. That doesn't mean you need to book right now. Just setting realistic expectations for what you will find out of CVG. The Friday departure automatically bumps you into a higher fare as the cheaper fares have Sun-Wed departure requirement baked into their fare rules.