LV PREP: Trinity powers way past Wildcats for title

Las Vegas High’s boys basketball team only has one starter taller than 6 feet, 2 inches, so the Wildcats are used to giving up height.

Thursday’s game against Trinity was no exception, though it wasn’t the Thunder’s height as much as the team’s strength that was Las Vegas’ downfall.

Jonathan Salazar, a powerful 6-foot-6-inch sophomore, scored 17 of his 21 points in the first half, and Trinity rolled to a 66-48 win over the host Wildcats in the championship game of the Las Vegas Prep Championship.

“They were not only tall, but they’re big, strong kids, too,” Las Vegas coach Jason Wilson said. “And they used their physicality against us and kind of gave us the business.”

Trinity dressed only seven players, but five stood 6-5 or taller.

The game featured six lead changes and two ties early before the Thunder took control. Las Vegas led 17-16 after a Marquise Raybon 3-pointer from the top of the key with 5:26 to go in the second quarter.

The lead lasted all of 16 seconds, as Daishen Nix’s basket started a 16-3 Trinity run to close the half. Salazar had nine points during the run, and Las Vegas didn’t threaten again.

“We were executing and some shots went in,” Wilson said of his team’s early success. “We hit three 3s in the first quarter. That kind of was a little bit of fool’s gold, because then we couldn’t hit anything in the middle of the game.

“We ran our stuff, we got good looks. Some of them just didn’t go in.”

Salazar added 11 rebounds and four blocked shots, and Nix had 15 points for Trinity. The Thunder finished the game with six players after coach Greg Lockridge ordered Melvin Ely out of the gym during a timeout in the second half.

Raybon had 16 points, 10 rebounds and four blocked shots to lead Las Vegas. Deondre Northey added 16 points and five assists for the Wildcats, who placed fourth in their division of the Tarkanian Classic prior to Christmas.

“We’re moving in the right direction,” Wilson said. “The teams that we’ve lost to the last two weeks have been really, really good teams. We’ve just got to try to get better.”

Chaparral 87, Woodbridge (Calif.) 76 — Samuel Porras had 25 points, seven rebounds and three assists as the Cowboys beat the Warriors for third place.

Porras hit his final five field goal attempts, including four 3-pointers, for Chaparral, which trailed 17-2 to start the game before battling back.

Marcus Hilliard added 15 points, 14 rebounds and four assists for the Cowboys. He scored 13 points in the third quarter when Chaparral extended a one-point halftime advantage to 62-55 after three quarters.

John Brooks hit four 3-pointers and scored 20 points, and Jonathan Tendale had 17 points and six rebounds for Chaparral. Tendale’s reverse layup with 36 seconds to go in the second quarter gave Chaparral a 37-36 lead, and the Cowboys wouldn’t trail again.

Cairyn Bray came off the bench to grab 10 rebounds for Chaparral.

Mitchell Rausch hit seven 3-pointers and scored 25 points to pace Woodbridge.

Rancho 87, McQueen 57 — Chrys Jackson poured in 42 points as the Rams routed the Lancers for seventh place.

Jackson hit nine 3-pointers, including three in the second quarter that helped the Rams take a 41-30 halftime advantage.

Justin Holiday added 15 points, and Dayshawn Robinson scored 12 for Rancho.

Dalten Smith scored 18 points to pace McQueen. Andrew Clark added 17 points, and teammate Tavian Cheaton-Dayton scored 12.