Vipers can't pull out win over Wizards

HIDALGO - Despite a second consecutive poor third quarter, the Vipers had a chance to win Thursday's game. Unfortunately for them, they only had one second to do it.

Smush Parker's off-balance 22-footer came up short, and the Vipers suffered a 100-98 loss to Dakota at Dodge Arena.

Renaldo Major's two free throws with one second remaining snapped a 98-all tie, forcing the Vipers (2-2) to come up with a miracle that wasn't answered, although Parker drained a step back 3-pointer with 10.1 seconds left that pulled the Vipers even.

"It's very difficult. The one thing we showed tonight is we can play from behind," Vipers guard Craig Winder said. "We keep fighting like that we'll win those close games.

For the second straight game, the Vipers came out flatter than an open can of Pabst Blue Ribbon to start the third quarter. Dakota (1-2) outscored them 34-20 in the third, more than erasing a 52-44 RGV halftime lead one night after Erie outscored the Vipers 35-12 in the third.

As a result, Maurice Baker's jumper with 14.4 seconds remaining, part of an 8-0 Dakota run to end the third quarter, gave the Wizards a 74-72 lead. They never trailed again.

"We waited too long to get restarted in the second half," Vipers coach Clay Moser said. "If anybody's got ideas on third quarters, I'm all ears because I don't think we've won a third quarter yet this year. I'm open to suggestions. It's something we've got to get fixed."

While Moser's e-mail box may be flooded with tips from amateur assistant coaches over the next few days, he can take solace in the fact center Alton Ford is in midseason form. The 6-foot-9, 275-pound Ford banged his way to 22 points and 10 rebounds, sharing game-high scoring honors with Dakota's Denham Brown. In fact, Ford and power forward Kendall Dartez (15 points, seven rebounds) form an impressive power duo for RGV. But Major (16 points) was able to split those two in earning his decisive trip to the line. Dartez was whistled for the foul.

Major, who played with the Golden State Warriors two years ago and sat out last season following heart surgery, swished his first attempt to put Dakota up 99-98. The plan then was to intentionally miss the second, but he line-drived that attempt off the backboard and through to put the Wizards up 100-98, leaving the Vipers had one last chance.

Parker took Trent Strickland's inbounds pass and got what Moser called "a decent look, but not a great look" from just inside the 3-point line. It appeared Parker was hit on the arm during his follow-through, but the Vipers didn't lodge a complaint after the shot came up short and the clock expired.

If not for another lackluster third quarter, the Vipers might not have been in that desperate position.

"We were up in the first half, and we outscored them in the fourth; that's just a situation where those are games you need to win at home," Moser said.

IN THE BONUS: Dakota's Hamed Haddadi had 10 points and six rebounds. The NBA assignment player from the Memphis Grizzlies starred for Iran in the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games and had approximately 25 fans in attendance. ... Winder scored 19 points in 23 minutes off the bench. Parker had 12 points, seven rebounds and four assists, but shot 5-of-16 and had nine turnovers.

Todd Mavreles covers the Rio Grande Valley Vipers for Valley Freedom Newspapers. You can reach him at (956) 683-4451.