By John Raffel
Carson City-Crystal girls’ basketball coach Larry Farmer realizes that sometimes you win by the buzzer-beater, and sometimes you lose by it.
Having experienced both situations this season has made it memorable, and it could get even more memorable by the time it ends.
The Eagles were undefeated at 8-0, including a win over Sacred Heart Academy at the buzzer. They lost their next game, also on a buzzer-beater, to Morley Stanwood, 39-38. They came back to beat Montabella, 65-27, but then lost to Nouvel Catholic Central, 48-41.
The Class C postseason could be very intriguing for the Eagles. “Our concentration is on the first district game, so we can play a second one,” Farmer said.
Also the school’s athletic director, Farmer is in his fifth year coaching the girls. “We were 21-3 last year and 20-3 the year before,” Farmer said. “It’s tough to compare. We’ve had some good players. One [Mackenzie Geister] plays at LCC.”
His team has earned a lot publicity this season. “It’s not just because of what they’ve done, but also the body of work from the last four years,” Farmer said prior to the Nouvel game. “Two years ago, we went to Nouvel and beat them. But they didn’t expect us to. This year they will take it serious. We’ve won some games that could have gone either way.
“The Sacred Heart win is big, because it helps us control our own destiny in the [Mid-State Activities Conference],” Farmer said.
Point guard Mikayla Duflo is averaging 18 points, 5.1 assists, 3.5 steals, and 4.4 rebounds per game. She has scored 996 career points and broken the school record of 958. Madi Weese is the center and is averaging 11 points and eight rebounds per game, and Sara McAlvey is averaging eight points.
“They’re very together,” Farmer said. “It’s maybe my most together team. They really like each other. We have a really good point guard, and the rest of them complement her. The parts are fitting well together.”
It’s not surprising that Farmer’s players put in a lot of basketball time during the offseason. “They’re a very hard-working group, just like the previous three years,” Farmer said. “The girls put in a lot of time. It’s nice to see it pay off for them. But they have a long way to go to achieve their goals. We have get better defensively, and we have to rebound better.”
It a close-knit group, and that’s a factor Farmer is hoping will take them a long way before the season ends.