In what has been a year of success for the McDermitt High School boys basketball team, the Bulldogs had a rare off night in a 55-40 loss to Jordan Valley, Ore., on Wednesday night.
“It was just a night where we could not get going,” said MHS coach Jack Smith. “We turned the ball over and could not make shots. Jordan Valley is big and is one of the most athletic teams we have played all year. They have given us trouble twice this year.”
Jordan Valley scored the first 13 points of the night, and forced McDermitt to take two timeouts in the first four minutes of play. The Bulldogs did not post their first points until the 2:28 mark of the first quarter, when Cauy Crutcher stole the ball and converted a layup.
The Mustangs answered right back with a 3-point field goal to push the gap back to 16-2, only to see the Bulldogs connect on long distance shots from Crutcher and Dominique Finley to close the gap to 18-9 at the end of the first quarter.
Jordan Valley scored the first six points of the second quarter, forcing McDermitt to call another timeout with 4:58 left in the first half. The break lit a fire under the Bulldogs, who closed the gap to 29-18, after Edgar Reyes and Troy McKee combined for nine points. The Mustangs settled for a 33-20 advantage at halftime.
Jordan Valley stretched its lead to 37-22 early in the third quarter, where McDermitt provided another run to cut the deficit to single digits. Crutcher and McKee combined for a personal 7-0 run that brought the Bulldogs within seven points at 37-30, but that is as close as McDermitt got. Jordan Valley pushed the advantage back to 13 points by the end of the third quarter.
The Mustangs led by as many as 18 points in the fourth quarter, when the Bulldogs score five of the final seven points.
McKee had a team-high 13 points, while Crutcher and Reyes each netted 11 points. Finley had three points and Diego Navarro two.
McDermitt (5-0 Eastern 1A, 12-7 overall) took on Wells on Friday and results were not available at press time. The Bulldogs host Jackpot today (Saturday) at 2 p.m.
McDermitt is back home Tuesday to play Eureka at 4:30 p.m. The contest was postponed on Jan. 20, after a scheduling conflict that had the teams playing at opposite sites.
