Trojans get back on track with win over Falcons

The Pahrump Valley boys basketball team ended their losing streak on Wednesday night with a 54-53 victory at home over the Coral Academy Falcons.

The Trojans came into the game on a 5-game losing streak. Their last win came against the Red Valley Miners in the Bullhead Shootout tournament in December.

Wednesday’s game was not one to miss. There was plenty of excitement to go around - multiple lead changes, a huge comeback and a nail-biting finish.

Despite holding an 8-7 lead over the Falcons at the end of the first quarter, the Trojans went into the locker room trailing 26-23.

The Trojans were led by their two-headed monster in Daxton Whittle and Aiden McClard.

McClard scored eight points in each half of Wednesday’s game, finishing his night with 16 points to go along with his six rebounds and two steals.

On the back of their senior guard Rone Pearlman, the Falcons were able to jump out to a 46-35 lead after the third quarter.

Pearlman had nine points in the third quarter alone and finished with 19 for the game. He came into the matchup averaging 28.8 points per game this season.

The Trojans kept Pearlman in check for much of the fourth quarter. He was only able to manage three points for the Falcons offense.

This led to the Trojans being able to make their comeback.

Following Pearlman’s lone basket of the quarter, Pahrump Valley head coach David Wilson called a timeout with about five minutes to go and his team trailing 43-49.

The Trojans would go on an 11-4 run to close out the game.

Whittle would score six of his season-high 22 points in those final five minutes.

Two of his points came from a steal that led to a breakaway layup in the final seconds of the game to give the Trojans the win.

Pahrump improved their season record to 5-12 and they’re now 1-1 in league play.

The boys will have a tough task this Friday when they head to the Las Vegas valley to face the SLAM Nevada Bulls.

The Bulls are on a mission this season, holding a 19-1 overall record and a 2-0 record in league play.

Their only loss this season came in a 63-60 defeat at the hands of the Somerset Losee Lions.

SLAM is being led by their 6 foot, 8 inch junior center, Noah Tomlin, who is averaging 17.3 points per game this season, and their senior guard, Eddie Lazano, who is averaging 13.3 points per game and is leading the team in assists with 2.3 per game.

Tip-off for Friday’s game is scheduled for 6:30 p.m.

Contact sports writer/editor Danny Smyth at dsmyth@pvtimes.com. Follow @the_dannysmyth on Twitter.