The Prairie Valley boy’s basketball team returned from the Thanksgiving break on Tuesday at home facing a tough Petrolia team.
The Bulldogs took control early and did not relinquish the lead all night, winning 64-52.
Prairie Valley started the game with a half-court trap defense that forced turnovers and kept the Pirates from being able to settle down. The Bulldogs led 8-1 midway through the first quarter and 16-7 at the end of the quarter.
Unfortunately, the physical trapping led to a lot of fouls called on Prairie Valley and the Bulldogs had to abandon it. Petrolia settled down and started executing, using their superior size to score inside.
Prairie Valley got a little sloppy with the ball some during this period, allowing the Pirates to close the gap to 29-24 heading into halftime.
The Bulldogs started the third quarter better, knocking down two three-pointers to keep Petrolia at bay. The Pirates got within five 37-32 with a little less than three minutes to go in the third quarter.
The Bulldogs bench closed the quarter out strong and Prairie Valley’s lead went to double digits 44-33 heading into the fourth quarter.
The Pirates hung around in the fourth as the Bulldogs could not put them away for good at any point. The lead never went below eight points, but the possibility of a couple of quick baskets turning the game around was always possible.
Still, Prairie Valley closed the game out strong, going on to win 64-52.

To read the full story, pick up a copy of the weekend edition of the Bowie News.