WINNEMUCCA - It has been tough going on offense for the Lowry High School junior varsity boys basketball team this year.
Defense, on the other hand has not been an issue and the Buckaroos are using that part of their game to check off victories.
That was evident in Lowry's last three games - all wins. The Buckaroos defeated rival Elko 52-39 on Tuesday night in Winnemucca and beat Dayton 40-31 and South Tahoe 42-26, on Friday, Jan. 11, and Saturday, Jan. 12.
"We still have not found our groove on offense," said LHS head coach Jeff Rinas. "We play well at times and other times we can't get into our offense. Our defensive play is what has won us games this year. When you hold teams to the 20s or 30s, you are going to win quite a few games."
It looked like Lowry was going to run Elko out of the gym as freshman Omar Guerrero scored 12 points, including two 3-point field goals in the first quarter to give the Buckaroos a 22-9 lead. Guerrero, Sterling Dennis and Roberto Sanchez combined for all 22 points.
As hot as Lowry was in the opening eight minutes, it went cold in the second period, going nearly five minutes without a point. Elko scored the first two points of the quarter to cut the deficit to 22-21. The Buckaroos (13-2 overall, 7-0 Division I-A, 1-0 Ruby Mountain) ended the spurt on a layup by Luke Logan, following a steal. Dennis connected on a running one-hander near the end of the half to increase the lead to four.
"We just have to find a way to keep up the intensity for four full quarters," Rinas said. "We just didn't take care of the ball in the second quarter and were not in position to get anything done on offense."
The third quarter was a near carbon-copy of the first as Lowry got back on track offensively with eight points from Christian Gray. Sanchez added five and Dennis four to help the Buckaroos build a 17-point advantage.
Elko closed the gap to 10 points with 3:45 left in the game, but scored just one point the rest of the game. The Buckaroos held the Indians to 17 points in the second half.
Guerrero led all scorers with 20 points, Gray contributed 11 and Dennis and Sanchez added nine points each. Logan added two points and Thomas Schwartz one.
"We were able to spread the scoring around and just about had four guys in double figures," Rinas said. "I was pleased that we gave up just 17 points in the second half."
In the home win over Dayton, Lowry used another strong defensive effort to hold the Dust Devils to 31 points, including 13 in the first half.
Gray nearly had as many points in the first 16 minutes of play than the Dust Devils did as a team. The sophomore made two 3-point field goals and scored 12 points to help the Buckaroos to a 25-13 advantage at the break.
Dayton made a 9-0 run in the first half to trail 17-13, but Lowry held the Dust Devils scoreless for the final 3:42 of the half and went on an 8-0 run.
Gray led all scorers with 18 points, Sanchez finished with six, Jacob Von Aspern four and Andy Mendoza, Chris Tyree, Dennis and Guerrero had two apiece.
An early morning bus trip to South Tahoe on Saturday didn't faze Lowry, with the Buckaroos starting the game on 14-4 run on six points each by Guerrero and Gray.
"We played well for having a game the night before and getting on the bus early for a long road trip," added the coach. "Again, our defense stepped up and played a big role. We had eight players score but we just need to get into a better flow on offense."
Each team scored seven points each in the second and fourth quarters, but Lowry pulled away in the third period on the strength of a 15-8 run.
Guerrero and Gray notched 11 and 10 points, respectively, for the Buckaroos. Dennis added seven, Tyree five, Von Aspern four, Dawson Cassinelli and Mendoza two each and Josh Rose one.
Lowry travels to Battle Mountain tonight for a 4:30 p.m. tipoff with the Longhorns.
"The kids are working hard in practice and I just want to see the kids keep the intensity going," Rinas. "If we can hit some shots and get confidence there we will be OK."
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