Galena boys stumble at Sparks

The Galena High boys basketball team stumbled at the wrong time of the season.

Galena was stunned in a 52-47 loss at Sparks on Tuesday. The loss seriously jeopardizes the Grizzlies' chances for the High Desert League title.

Reed is 9-2 in league while Galena fell to 8-3. The Raiders finish at Elko on Friday and Galena finishes at Elko on Saturday.

A Reed loss and a Galena win would force a tie for the league crown. Since Galena swept Reed in league play, it would receive the No. 1 seed into the Northern 4A playoffs.

But Galena coach Tom Maurer said he isn't concerned about that right now.

"I don't see us winning this thing," said Maurer, whose team has clinched at least second. "I see us as a second place team and justifiably so."

"You need to be the hunter, not the hunted," Maurer also said about his team's play. "We didn't come to play. We just physically got outrebounded."

Sparks had 41 rebounds, including 16 offensive boards. "I think they played an excellent game to their style," Maurer said.

Derek Lorenzen scored 23 points to lead Galena.