Returning like a phoenix

The Greenwave boys rose from the ashes last week, claiming a win after two defeats in the Lindhurst Blazers Holiday Classic basketball tournament in Olivehurst, Calif.

On Wednesday, Fallon was defeated by Lindhurst, 54-39; Thursday Mt. Shasta claimed a narrow victory, 55-53; on Friday, the Greenwave came from behind to defeat the Mira Loma Matadors, 48-43.

According to Fallon coach Brad Barton, Fallon had a slight disadvantage from the start since a few players were missing. A couple players were sick and one did not go to the tournament. Barton said they played well, though, and gave it everything they could.

In all three games, both teams fought hard. Against Lindhurst and Mt. Shasta, the scores stayed close before a sudden rally in the third quarter pushed the opposition ahead and kept the Greenwave from getting a tie. In the Mira Lome game, Fallon was behind 25-15 at the half, but a third-quarter surge put them in the lead to secure their win.

“We played really competitively for the most part,” Barton said.

Craig Smith led the team during the tournament, scoring 40 points on 6 treys. He also made all his free throws and 20 rebounds.

Smith was also placed on the All-Tournament team.

Barton said sophomores John Cooley, Hayden Strasdin and Brenden Larson also did well; throughout the tournament, Cooley scored 18 points with 16 rebounds, Strasdin tallied 13 points and Larson 6. Freshman Elijah Jackson tallied 26 points between the Lindhurst and Mt. Shasta games.

“It’s exciting those younger guys are playing well,” Barton said. “It’s a good sign for our future.”

This week, Fallon has two league home games. On Friday the Wave takes on the number one team, Elko, at 7:30 p.m. and Saturday it plays Spring Creek at 2:30 p.m.

“They’re excellent basketball teams; we’ve got our work cut out for us,” Barton said of both teams. “They’ve got quality juniors and seniors playing.”

During practices this week, the Greenwave have been focusing on their defense and hope to stop the opposition’s scoring maneuvers.