Sunset boys teams practice instead of playing tourney games

Instead of competing to decide which team will represent the Sunset Region in next week’s state boys basketball tournament, nine teams continued to practice Wednesday.

Nine teams for eight spots. In a tournament that didn’t start as it was scheduled to on Wednesday and likely won’t start Thursday, either.

“We just don’t know when we’ll play,” Bishop Gorman coach Grant Rice said. “The tough part is we built our weekend and Monday and Tuesday around being ready to play Wednesday. It’s frustrating for the kids, obviously.”

The Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association postponed Wednesday’s Sunset Region games as the NIAA and Western High School wait for a second-level appeal of four forfeits to be heard. The Sunrise Region games went on as scheduled.

“The hearing is in direct conflict with the present tournament format scheduled to begin tonight, and depending on the outcome of the hearing, different seeding and participant possibilities exist,” NIAA executive director Eddie Bonine said Wednesday. “With that said, I am issuing an order to postpone the event until a judgment on an appeal is final.”

When anyone in the Sunset will play is up to independent hearing officer Pat Dolan, who at 1:30 p.m. Thursday will hear arguments regarding Western’s appeal of four forfeits because of the use of an ineligible player.

The hearing will take place by telephone, and Bonine said representatives from Pahrump Valley, Durango, Bonanza and Spring Valley — all schools which in some way are affected by the forfeits — also might participate along with Bonine and representatives from Western.

Western self-reported the infraction on Feb. 5 and appealed the forfeits, claiming that fifth-year senior Ravon Robinson didn’t contribute to the team’s victory in two games against Pahrump Valley and games against Bonanza and Durango.

The forfeits dropped Western from second to fifth in the Southwest League. The Warriors finished fifth and missed qualifying for the playoffs.

Western appealed the forfeits under the NIAA’s contribution to victory clause, but Bonine denied the appeal on Feb. 10.

Western opted not to pursue a second-level appeal and have the case heard by an independent hearing officer at that time, but after Kristopher Coleman, a senior on the Warriors basketball team, filed for a temporary restraining order and an injunction and had the order dissolved by judge Stefany Miley, Western chose late Tuesday afternoon to file the second-level appeal.

Until a decision is made on the appeal, the Sunset Region won’t play.

“We felt like we had our kids in a really good spot,” said Desert Oasis coach Ken Gibson, whose team currently is the Southwest League’s No. 2 seed and would host a first-round game. “We have to be prepared to play two possible opponents.”

At issue is not only whether Western will make the playoffs but where teams will be seeded in the field. The only matchup that will not be affected is the Arbor View-Gorman game.

“It’s very difficult to keep the kids focused when there are so many questions,” Western coach Chip Nelson said. “We practice with the assumption that we could end up playing. These guys have played hard all season.”

Given that the second-appeal won’t be heard until Thursday afternoon, it seems unreasonable to think a decision could be made and all parties informed of it in time for games tonight.

“We won’t have a decision (today),” Bonine said. “We’re in uncharted waters. I don’t like anything that has to do with postponing a tournament.”

It’s possible the Sunset tournament could begin Friday at the earliest. If that’s the case, the semifinals likely would be Saturday and the championship Monday, both at Palo Verde. The state tournament is set to start Feb. 25 at UNR’s Lawlor Events Center.

“That’s a tough stretch, especially if you’re a team that doesn’t have a lot of depth,” Gibson said. “We’re concerned with keeping kids fresh.”

Palo Verde and Desert Oasis are host sites for other tournaments tonight and Friday, with the Sunset girls semifinals and finals set for Palo Verde and the Class 2A semifinals for boys and girls set for Desert Oasis on Friday. All six small-school region championships are scheduled for Desert Oasis on Saturday.

“We look to make adjustments in those schedules,” Bonine said.