Boys all-stars put on a show

By THOMAS RANSON

LVN sports writer

FALLON - Dazzling the crowd is what an all-star basketball game should be about.

Just ask North Valley's Archie Kovich, who was robbed after hitting an awkward half-court shot just after the third period horn sounded.

"It was definitely fun having athletes with the same talent as you," Kovich said. "It just felt good. The crowd got into it, and it sparked our team."

Kovich's uncounted 3-pointer energized his teammates to a 31-22 fourth quarter run as the Blue team came back to nip the Silver, 84-81, Tuesday night in the seventh annual Fallon Optimist All-Star Basketball Classic at Churchill County High School's Elmo Dericco Gym.

"It's fun for the kids and hopefully fun for the fans. That's what it's all about," Blue coach Rob Streeter (Douglas) said. "I love this. This is why I do what I do. It's great for the kids to be recognized for their hard work for four years of high school."

Streeter, who coached the all-star game for the second time, was pleased to get back onto the court, especially with a talented group of athletes.

"You let the kids be kids. It's fun to work with a great group of kids," he said.

Hug's Armon Johnson led both teams with a dazzling 32 points and will play for the Nevada Wolf Pack next fall. Reed's Alex McKenzie led the Blue with 18 points, including four 3-pointers.

"It was fun to see everybody. There was a lot of talent out here," Johnson said. "I'm excited about UNR and talking to the coach (Mark Fox) about it."

Johnson's high school coach, Brian Voyles, guided the Silver team and said the game was a good opportunity for the seniors to don their uniforms one final time.

"This is a good group of kids. It was a nice, close game for an all-star game," Voyles said. "It was nice to see all my kids one more time. All the kids looked good."

McKenzie's block with 57 seconds left in the game prevented the Silver from tying the game with the Blue ahead, 77-75. McKenzie, though, nailed his fourth 3-pointer with 36 seconds left to put his team up by five.

"He totally stepped up. He put a dagger in that team," Kovich said of McKenzie. "He single-handlely did that. It takes a lot of guts to pull through."

Larry Smith scored 13 points for the Silver, James Blackford had 11 and Dominic Anxo added nine. Smith and Blackford played for Hug, while Anxo played for Manogue.

Mike Gransberry (Douglas) finished with 12 points, Kovich added 11 and Craig Davidson (North Valleys) had nine.

"It felt good. I enjoy basketball a lot," said Fallon's Charlie Lockwood, who scored four points. "They (teammates) were really cool. I was really excited to play, but I wish I could have gone out better."