Nail-biter in Nixon

The VCHS Muckers won a close game against rival Pyramid Lake Lakers on Tuesday, Jan. 6. 

“Pyramid Lake is a very fun basketball environment,” said Head Coach Clint Hess. “Both teams' fans are very into the game and involved, which makes it tough on the kids to an extent, and sometimes it bothers us, but the last few years it has not, and we’ve been able to come out of there with wins.” 

It was a close game throughout, and the Muckers went into halftime with a six-point deficit. 

The boys rallied together and had an impressive 27-point third quarter, giving themselves a chance to secure the win. 

“We battled – we never gave up,” said Hess. “We were down for 90% of the game; we were losing, but we stayed close enough to make a run in the final minutes and close it out.”

After a hard-fought, physical fourth quarter, the Muckers captured their second league win of the season with a final score of 65-61. 

Looking ahead to the long-awaited matchup against Smith Valley, Hess says the game was, “a great energy and confidence boost”.

Top performers of the night were Luke Branson and Derek McCoy, who finished with a combined 45 points, and Layton Huxhold with 15 points. 

The whole team played hard, too. 

“Our younger kids stepped up when they needed to,” said Hess. “We had three freshmen on the court at one point. That was very good to see.”  

As for the girls' game, they had a tough matchup against the three-time defending state champion Lady Lakers. 

The Lady Muckers fought hard but fell short, 63-32.