MCDERMITT — The McDermitt High School boys basketball team was hoping for a little magic Friday night in its match-up with league-leading Owyhee.
It was Winterfest week for the Bulldogs and in addition, Cindy Sherburn, a long-time coach and teacher at McDermitt Combined School, was honored.
Friends and family remembered the teacher and coach, famous for her tie-dye shirts. Sherburn, who had the weight room dedicated to her passed away in August of 2021.
McDermitt battled Owyhee for two quarters, but the Braves pulled away for a 59-39 win.
“We battled tough for a half,” said MHS coach Jack Smith. “It felt like Cindy was sending us some good luck at the start."
The Bulldogs (3-14 overall, 2-4 Northern 1A East) used a quick five-point spurt, off of baskets by Eli Northrup and Tristan Bitt to take a 7-4 lead in the first quarter.
The Braves scored the next seven points to go in front 11-7 after eight minutes of action.
The Bulldogs rallied to tie the game at 15 off of buckets by Enrique Villalobos and Braeden Ramsey, only to see the Braves make a late 10-2 run to lead 25-17 at halftime.
That run stretched to the first points of the third quarter for the Braves, as Owyhee claimed a 37-17 advantage.
Ramsey stopped the run with a basket with 3:06 left in the quarter and the senior was the only Bulldog to score in the third quarter, as Owyhee opened a 41-21 lead.
“They were starting to hit shots and getting to the loose balls,” Smith said. “We got a little tired in the third quarter and they made a little run on us. We battled for most of the game, they just wore us down.”
The advantage grew to 57-23 midway through the fourth quarter, but McDermitt would score the next 16 points aided by two 3-pointers from Bitt and six points from Villalobos.
Bitt paced McDermitt with 15 points, Ramsey added 12, Villalobos 10 and Northrup two.
McDermitt/Carlin match-up postponed
The scheduled game between McDermitt and Carlin set for Saturday in McDermitt was postponed due to Covid issues within in the Carlin program. The game will now be played on Thursday, Feb. 10, in McDermitt at 5:30 p.m.
McDermitt travels to Eureka on Friday for a 7:30 p.m. tip off. After playing Carlin on Feb. 10, the Bulldogs host Jackpot on Friday, Feb. 11, at 3 p.m. and close out the regular season on Friday, Feb. 12, in Wells.
“We have a busy couple weeks coming up,” Smith said. “Hopefully, we can get a couple wins and improve out playoff spot.”
All six teams in the Northern 1A East will qualify for the regional tournament that gets underway on Tuesday, Feb. 15, at host sites. The No. 1 and No. 2 seeds receive first-round byes. The No. 3/No. 6 and No. 4/No. 5 game will be played at the site of the fourth seed.
Owyhee, Eureka and Carlin are the top three seeds. Jackpot is fourth, McDermitt fifth and Wells sixth.
