Eldorado defeats Silverado to move into fourth place

Spencer Patterson

Thursday, Jan. 29, 1998 | 2:51 a.m.

Just last week, the Eldorado boys basketball squad looked like a team going absolutely nowhere.

With just one win in their first five league contests, the Sundevils sat buried in seventh place in the nine-team Sunrise Division.

But thanks to a five-game winning streak, Eldorado suddenly has put itself into the thick of the Sunrise race, moving all the way up to fourth place in the span of just nine days.

And the confidence the Sundevils have gained during their current tear is flowing, as they showed host Silverado in Wednesday night's 57-48 victory.

After falling behind by as many as 10 points, the visitors lifted their game in the second half, making all the key plays in the final minutes to keep their streak alive.

"It's all mental for us," said Eldorado junior James Bayless, who finished with a game-high 22 points and 10 rebounds.

"After the first couple of games, I started to get a little discouraged. But the momentum picked up after we won a couple, and you could see a difference in practice."

With the Skyhawks (4-13, 3-7) clinging to a 46-44 lead with four minutes to play, the Sundevils (8-10, 6-4) put the clamps on defensively, holding their opponents to a single basket the rest of the way.

On the other end, Bayless' teammates looked for the strong 6-7 center nearly every trip down court. He converted often, scoring seven points in the final three minutes.

Eldorado point guard Lavor Elliott also played a big role down the stretch, sinking a 3-pointer and coming up with a pair of steals near midcourt to thwart Silverado's comeback attempt.

"At the end, we had a lot of character and played with heart," said Eldorado coach Cal Wulfsberg. "It's just knowing how to take charge and win close games."

The Skyhawks, who have lost four straight since upsetting league leader Green Valley Jan. 10, also did a lot of good things in the contest, particularly in the first half.

The hosts built a 24-14 first-quarter advantage, their biggest of the game, behind tight double-teaming defense on Bayless and the inside play of Lateef Durosinmi, who wound up with a team-high 11 points and seven rebounds.

But after a torn net delayed the start of the second half by more than 20 minutes, the Sundevils returned to the court looking like a team intent on getting right back into the game.

On Eldorado's third trip down the court, forward Marcus Dorsey followed a Bayless miss, slamming the ball home with two hands. The play cut the visitors' deficit to seven points and, more importantly, seemed to invigorate the Sundevils, who never looked back.

"It's a frustrating thing for our kids because we're playing good basketball, and we haven't won," said Skyhawks' coach Pat Condron. "We've just got to keep fighting and play hard."

* ELSHWHERE: Sunrise Division leading Green Valley took a 30-8 lead after one quarter and rolled to an easy 86-56 victory over visiting Vo-Tec. Four players scored in double figures for the Gators (12-4, 9-1), while Cory Belk poured in 29 points in the losing effort for the Roadrunners (2-13, 1-8).