The Prairie Valley Bulldogs ended their season on Monday by falling to state-ranked Graford at Chico.
The defending state champs won 74-40 against a Bulldogs team that fought hard until the end even when tragedy struck during the game.
Prairie Valley knew it was a long shot for the team to upset a state power like Graford in the best of circumstances. The Rabbits beat them 87-17 in the playoffs the previous season and the Bulldogs were coming into the game with 10 days since their final regular season game.
The gulf between the two teams seemed represented at the tip off when short senior point guard and leading scorer Tyler Winkler decided to do it because no one on the Bulldog team had any shot against Graford’s 6’7” post player Collin Roberts anyway and the visual was funny.
Despite all of that, Prairie Valley got off to the best start it could have hoped for. Winkler was on fire from 3-point range and his penetration into the lane was causing havoc against Graford’s aggressive man-to-man defense. He scored 11 of his team’s 16 points in the quarter.
The Bulldogs did their best defensively to try and wall off the paint with an extra defender always hanging around the paint to dissuade post ups from Roberts. Dakota Fore fought all game, but was giving up half a foot and if Roberts caught it near the rim it more than likely went in.
The team did a good job of making Graford use other action and unfortunately, the Rabbits were making some 3-pointers themselves and took a 22-16 lead heading into the second quarter.
The big shot making from the Bulldogs could not keep up for forever and with Graford’s coach not being pleased with his team’s defense, the intensity picked up in the Rabbits’ man-to-man play.
Winkler was now being shadowed all around the court and bumped physically. He tried to draw free throws driving into the lane, but could not get the whistle called.
Fellow senior guard Eli Croxton picked up some slack, scoring five points in the quarter. Prairie Valley struggled to score overall, but it was the best defensive quarter for the Bulldogs as well, getting hands on balls and battling hard against the bigger Graford players on the defensive glass.
Only in the final minutes did the Rabbits open up a double-digit lead, with the score 35-22 at halftime.
It was more of the same for half of the third quarter as neither team scored much and Graford led only 39-24. Then the Rabbits went on a scoring run as the pace picked up and fatigue from Prairie Valley led to turnovers and transition opportunities for Graford.
The Rabbits were up 53-26 with a little less than a minute left when the Bulldogs and the Prairie Valley community was dealt a blow.
Winkler went to contest a corner 3-pointer and fell down hard on his hip. He stayed down and it became apparent it was serious. At first Prairie Valley fans started to get on the floor in a prayer circle, but they were quickly joined by all of the Graford fans and the circle was as big as the court.
It was a 30-40 minute delay until paramedics came with a stretcher to transport him to Wise Regional. Winkler was conscious the whole time surrounded by his family and Prairie Valley officials, but the realization that he was exiting his last high school basketball game along with the pain brought him to tears.
He got encouraging words from Graford Coach Jeff Bell.
“I just told him he represents what high school athletics is all about,” Bell said. “His heart and his hustle and desire. He played so hard. It’s unfortunate what happened to him tonight. It was kind of a freak deal, but I’m telling you. A guy like that can play for me anytime. I’ve been in this business for 41 years and shoot I would take him right now. The way he played was just awesome so we are just praying for him.”
An update Tuesday morning from Coach Seth Stephens was that Winkler had a pinched nerve in the sciatic area which caused the numbing sensation and X-rays were negative for any broken bones.
He is expected to be recovered in a couple weeks and ready to participate in spring sports.

To read the full story, pick up a copy of the mid-week edition of the Bowie News.