Of all the big basketball games taking place across the state this week — and there are plenty — the most intriguing actually takes place over the stateline in California.
Lincoln County (Panaca) travels to Needles (Calif.) for a first-place showdown in the boys 2A Southern League at 7:30 p.m. Friday. The host Mustangs are the defending 2A state champs and off to a strong start again this season, while Lincoln County features the state's second-leading scorer in guard Dantley Walker.
Walker has drawn obvious comparisons to Hoosiers protagonist Jimmy Chitwood for his small-town roots and silky-smooth jump shot ever since helping Lincoln County to the state title as a freshman. Now a 5-foot-11 junior, Walker is averaging 32.5 points and 10.1 assists per game while leading the Lynx to a 14-3 (5-0 Southern League) record and the No. 20 spot in the MaxPreps state rankings.
Walker's scoring output trails only the 35.6 average by Kevin Olekaibe of Cimarron-Memorial (Las Vegas). On Saturday, Walker drained a 3-pointer at the buzzer from just behind the mid-court line to give the Lynx a 59-56 win at Agassi Prep (Las Vegas) in a battle of Southern League unbeatens.
Senior forward Eric Rippetoe had 27 points in the win over Agassi Prep and is averaging 23.4 points per game as defenses scheme to keep the ball out of Walker's hands.
Last season, the Mustangs were able to contain Walker in two meetings behind seniors Darra Russell and Stevie Kidd. That backcourt moved on, but Needles returned nine players from the team that won it all in 2009. This is will be the first big test, however, for the Mustangs (10-3, 4-0), who have knocked off the bottom four teams in the Southern League standings.
Walker, who was named after former NBA player Adrian Dantley, is reportedly hearing from BYU and a number of other schools on the West Coast.
GRIMBLE FIRMLY COMMITTED TO USC
Bishop Gorman senior tight end Xavier Grimble remains committed to Southern California, his father, Bill Grimble, said last week, according to Nevadapreps.com.
After Pete Carroll left to coach the Seattle Seahawks, Xavier Grimble said he was set to visit to UCLA and consider a backup plan. Grimble never pulled his commitment to the Trojans, which he made in April, and reportedly is pleased with the hiring of Lane Kiffin to take over at USC.
"He's a USC guy," Bill Grimble told Nevadapreps.com. "He's a Pete Carroll disciple."
Grimble is ranked as the No. 2 tight end and No. 26 player overall in Tom Lemming's Top 100. The first day he can sign of a letter of intent is Feb. 3.
FAVORITES EMERGE IN NORTHERN REGION
The Reno boys basketball team showed it will not give up the High Desert League title easily, as the Huskies handed No. 25 McQueen (Reno) a 60-49 setback last week.
Reno has been the team to beat in the High Desert the last four years and signaled it will again be in the mix as the Huskies (9-9, 5-0) overcame a 17-0 run by McQueen in the first quarter.
It was the first league loss for the Lancers (10-5, 4-1) and came in front of the largest crowd at Reno since the 2007 matchup against rival Galena (Reno) and McDonald's All-America Luke Babbitt. In the Sierra League, No. 6 Bishop Manogue (Reno) won the battle of league unbeatens, 83-60, over Douglas (Minden) on Saturday.
The Miners (13-4, 6-0) trailed by one at halftime before outscoring Douglas (10-7, 5-1) 51-27 after the break. Bobby Hunter led Manogue with 26 points.
SNEAK PREVIEW
* Chaparral (Las Vegas) at Canyon Springs (North Las Vegas), boys basketball: Chaparral (10-8, 4-0) is one of the early-season surprises, as the Cowboys have already doubled their Northeast League win total from a season ago. They get a measuring-stick game Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. against Canyon Springs (12-3, 4-0), the No. 4 team in the MaxPreps state rankings.
* Silverado (Las Vegas) at Liberty (Henderson), girls basketball: The No. 8 Patriots (14-3, 5-0 Southeast League) are fresh off beating third-ranked Green Valley on Tuesday, a win that snapped the Gators' 33-game league winning streak. Now, Amanda Delgado and Co. have to refocus their attention on Thursday's 6:30 p.m. contest with the No. 9 Skyhawks (13-4, 4-1) and high-scoring guard Shea Collins.
* Lincoln County at Needles, girls basketball: Before the boys take the court on Friday, senior forward Marissa Smerek leads Lincoln County (13-4, 5-0) against the two-time defending 2A state champion Mustangs (15-0, 5-0) in a battle for sole possession of first place in the 2A Southern League.
* Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas) at Desert Oasis (Las Vegas), boys basketball: The showdown at 6:30 p.m. lost a bit of luster when No. 9 Desert Oasis (9-5, 5-1) was upended by fourth-place Spring Valley, knocking the Diamondbacks from the ranks of the unbeatens in the Southwest League. The Gaels (16-1, 7-0) now have sophomore wing Shabazz Muhammad healthy and are up to No. 18 in the MaxPreps Xcellent 25 Boys Basketball Rankings.
* Reed (Sparks) at Reno, girls basketball: The host Huskies (14-4, 5-0 High Desert) are No. 1 in the MaxPreps state rankings and have dominated Reed the last two meetings, holding sixth-ranked Reed (11-3, 4-1) to less than 35 points in each game. The Raiders lost 64-34 in the most recent matchup as Pacific-bound center Danielle Peacon battled foul trouble and will try to reverse that Friday.
* Bishop Manogue (Reno) at Galena (Reno), girls basketball: The Miners lost their first five games of the season, but have since rebounded and are 6-0 in the Sierra League. No. 11 Manogue (10-8) puts that undefeated mark on the line Friday when it hosts No. 5 Galena. The Grizzlies (16-2, 6-0) feature 6-foot-1 standout junior forward Emily Burns, the reigning league Player of the Year who is averaging 17 points, 10 rebounds, two steals and two blocks per game.
David Schoen works at the Las Vegas Review-Journal, and is a former Associate Sports Editor and Turn2 columnist for the Oakland (Calif.) Tribune. You can reach him at ByDavid1@aol.com.
