The McDermitt High School boys basketball team wrapped up the first half of the Eastern 1A schedule last Friday in Eureka
The Bulldogs got off to a good start, but a sluggish second and third quarter led to a 66-46 defeat to the Vandals.
McDermitt led by two points, 14-12, after eight minutes of play, only to see Eureka catch fire on offense with a 24-point second quarter. The Vandal run allowed them to go into halftime with a 36-26 lead.
Eureka continued to pull away after the break with an 18-8 run in the third quarter to push the advantage to 20 points at 54-34.
Each squad scored 12 points in the fourth quarter, as the Vandals held on to their double-digit lead.
McDermitt also found itself in foul trouble late in the game, with four players playing with four fouls in the final minutes of the contest.
Enrique Villalobos ended the night with 14 points and 10 rebounds for a double-double and teammate Tristan Bitt added 13 points, three steals and a rebound.
Waylon Nino, McDermitt’s lone senior, netted seven points to go with seven rebounds, three assists and a steal. Kaden Crutcher and Alex Navarro each had three points and Steele Crossley had two points.
Navarro added seven rebounds, three steals and three assists and Crossley and Braeden Ramsey grabbed five and three rebounds, respectively.
With the first half of the league schedule complete, McDermitt sits in fifth place in the Eastern 1A at 2-5. Wells leads the league at 6-1, followed by Jackpot (5-1), Eureka (4-2) and Owyhee (3-2).
The top four teams advance to the 1A Regional Championships in Las Vegas from Feb. 20-22.
That regional will see the East and South play, while the other regional tournament will be in Hawthorne between the West and Central 1A schools.
McDermitt hosted Lund on Friday night and results were not available at press time. The Bulldogs travel to Jackpot today (Saturday) for a 2:30 p.m. tip with the Jaguars.
McDermitt will be back on its home floor on Friday, Feb. 7, to face Carlin at 7:30 p.m. and Owyhee on Saturday, Feb. 8, at 2:30 p.m.
The regular season concludes on Friday, Feb. 14, as McDermitt hosts Eureka at 7:30 p.m.
