Prairie Valley vs Saint Jo boys
The Prairie Valley boy’s basketball team was able to give the Saint Jo Panthers only their second district loss on Friday.
It was the Bulldog’s senior night and they delivered with a 56-53 win against the athletic Panthers.
Prairie Valley used some of that home court energy to build a double-digit lead at halftime. At one point the Bulldogs lead was up to 15 points in the third quarter.
Saint Jo came storming back in the fourth quarter. The Panthers fought all the way back and had a chance to tie the game at the buzzer, but in the end Prairie Valley held on to win.
Nicholas Bell led the Bulldogs with 13 points and nine rebounds. Sergio Mancilla and Tyler Winkler each scored 11 points and were key for helping build the first half lead.
Prairie Valley Coach Seth Stephens said better free throw shooting late could have put the game away, but good defense and 12 3-pointers overcame that in the end. The win keeps the Bulldogs in the playoff race for the third seed tied with Midway.
Connor Thompson led Saint Jo with 18 points. Brock Durham and Logan Morman joined him in double-figures scoring 11 and 10 points.
Coach Lyndon Cook did not think his team deserved to win the game with the way they played defense, but commended them for almost sending the game into overtime at the end. A chance to share the district title is probably out of the question, but the Panthers are still expecting to finish with the second seed and a playoff berth.
Prairie Valley next plays at Slidell at 5 p.m. on Feb. 18. Saint Jo next hosts Bellevue at 6 p.m. on Feb. 14.

Prairie Valley vs Saint Jo girls
The Prairie Valley Lady Bulldogs were able to win their final home game of the season on Friday against Saint Jo.
The Lady Bulldogs won with ease compared to the game earlier in the season, winning 40-18.
It was a close first half with Prairie Valley only leading 19-16, but the Lady Bulldogs shut down the Lady Panthers in the second half, holding them to two points.
Hailey Winkler led the team with 15 points and six steals. Emily Carpenter joined her in double-figures with 12 points while grabbing nine rebounds.
Saint Jo was led by Shaden Johnson who scored five points. Coach Taylor Klement thought her team got good looks, but just could not make the shots in the second half.
Neither team will make the playoffs this year. Prairie Valley played at Gold-Burg earlier in the week to finish its season. Saint Jo played Slidell earlier in the week to end its season.

Forestburg
The Forestburg basketball teams traveled to district and state-power Slidell on Friday.
The Lady Horns lost 67-9 and the Longhorns lost 84-29.
Boy’s Coach Eldon Van Hooser liked how his team competed against the defending state champions. The team was able to avoid getting into foul trouble which was a good thing to see.
The Forestburg girl’s played its final game earlier in the week against Bellevue. The Longhorns final game will be at home against Midway at 6 p.m. on Feb. 14.