BATTLE MOUNTAIN - The Battle Mountain High School varsity boys basketball team lost two games this past weekend in its final non-conference action of the season.
The Longhorns (9-7) hosted Pershing County on Friday and lost to the Mustangs 59-34. Battle Mountain headed out on the road Saturday to Silver Springs and was beaten 56-51.
"We are struggling with confidence right now," said BMHS head coach Roger Wallock. "We doubt ourselves and it affects all aspects of our game."
Battle Mountain fell behind 18-0 in the first quarter to Pershing County and was forced to play from behind in the last three quarters.
Ryan Salazar ended the scoreless streak for the Longhorns with 7:12 left in the second quarter, beginning a run that saw Battle Mountain close the gap to 23-19 with less than a minute to play in the first half.
Salazar scored eight of Battle Mountain's first nine points, as the Longhorns cut the deficit to 19-9 midway through the second period. Pershing County scored the final four points of the first half to lead by eight points and put the game out of reach with a 14-3 run in the third quarter.
The Mustangs scored 10 of the first 11 points of the quarter and held the Longhorns without a field goal for more than nine minutes in the second half. Pershing County led 46-24 in the fourth quarter, when Salazar converted a 3-point play with six minutes left in the game.
Salazar led Battle Mountain with 12 points, while Marco Rangel had five points, nine rebounds, seven blocks and two steals. Daniel Itza added five points and three assists.
Battle Mountain dropped its fifth straight game with the five-point loss to Silver Stage in a crossover match up with the Lahontan League school.
The Longhorns had three players score in double figures, led by Jeremy Price with 14 points. In addition, Price had seven rebounds and three assists. James Willingham and Rangel each added 11 points, with Rangel finishing with 13 rebounds and five blocks.
"We show spurts of excellent basketball but we need to believe in ourselves if we are to get a win anytime soon," Wallock said. "I am very pleased with our physical efforts, but we are not making smart decisions offensively and that affects our amount of shots. Turnovers continue to plague us."
Battle Mountain was scheduled to open Ruby Mountain League play Tuesday in Elko. Results were not available at press time. The Longhorns play host to Lowry on Friday and travel to Spring Creek next Tuesday for a pair of 7:30 p.m. games.
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