Leesburg, Va. — Following the reclassification and district shakeup in Loudoun County, the Tuscarora High School boys basketball team knew their familiar foe Loudoun Valley High School could very well be their biggest obstacle in securing a Dulles District title in 2024.
In their first matchup of the season, a back-and-forth first quarter was the anomaly as the Huskies exploded in the second quarter on to earn a statement win over the Vikings, 81-50, on January 18 in Leesburg.
“That’s a great team: they’re well coached, and they have some great players,” Tuscarora head coach Mike Newkirk said. “We were a little timid starting the game out. In the second quarter, I thought we were able to do a better job agitating Landen [Conrad] on defense while not looking so stagnant on offense.”
It’s tough enough preparing for a big game but a holiday weekend and snow days added to the challenge as the Huskies had had just a single practice in the last four days to get ready for the Vikings, and some evidence of that extended challenge presented itself early on.
In the first minute of the game, Loudoun Valley senior guard Landen Conrad scored the first bucket of the game, a long-range shot to put the Vikings up 3-0.
After Tuscarora senior guard TJ Duggan scored to cut the lead to 3-2, Conrad responded with another make as the evasive guard got going early.
A three by Tuscarora junior guard Travis Duggan temporarily quieted the Loudoun Valley star, however, Conrad continued to impress, scoring 10 of his game-high 26 points in the first quarter, including a tough and-one bucket late in the first quarter.
Despite Conrad’s best effort, the Huskies hung around early as sophomore point guard Kevin Worley came off the bench and hit a couple of big threes to give Tuscarora an 18-15 lead after one full quarter.
Back-to-back scores by the Duggan brothers and an and-one finish by Tuscarora senior guard Jayden Johnson gave the Huskies an 8-0 run to start the second quarter, extending their lead to 26-15.
But like he had throughout the night, Conrad would not go down without a fight, as he led a 7-0 Loudoun Valley response to cut the lead back to four.
“We knew we needed to keep tabs on Landen. He’s the head of the snake. Every team tries to chop it off, but you’re not going to do that. He’s shifty, he’s quick, he creates nightmares,” Newkirk said. “We just wanted to send a lot of bodies at him and not let him get to his sweet spots. We didn’t stop him, but we contained him and disrupted him enough.”
Some back-and-forth ensued before Johnson hit two free throws and two threes to extend the Huskies lead to 37-26, a lead they would only continue to extend for the rest of the night.
“Our guys have been together, we’re clicking, and we were ready,” Newkirk said. “I felt the energy when I got to school today.”
That energy was clearly evident in the second half when Johnson added 13 to his game-high 26 to match Conrad point for point. TJ Duggan chipped in 8 second-half points to finish with 18 points, 5 rebounds, and 4 assists.
Tuscarora (2-0, 13-1) has planted itself firmly in the driver’s seat of the Dulles District with a challenging week on the horizon, including games against Dulles District No. 3 Rock Ridge and region foes Woodgrove and Broad Run, who currently sit at No. 2 and No. 1, respectively, in the Catoctin District. Meanwhile, Loudoun Valley (2-1, 10-5) will look to bounce back in upcoming games against Dominion and Rock Ridge.
“We’re excited. In so many ways, it’s almost like playoff basketball,” Newkirk said. “With a month left in the season, we get an opportunity to dip in and show them a little bit of what they’ll see in the region. We feel like we’re the best team out here, and if we play good basketball, the winning will take care of itself.”
Jace Lucas captured 100+ photos at the game!
Tuscarora Stats
| Tuscarora | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | FT |
| Jayden Johnson | 26 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6-for-10 |
| TJ Duggan | 18 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2-for-2 |
| Jet Thompson | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2-for-6 |
| Payton Williams | 8 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1-for-4 |
| Isaac Ure | 6 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0-for-2 |
| Kevin Worley | 6 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0-for-0 |
| Travis Duggan | 5 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Braden Scott | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Chase Amboy | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Jonah Ulloa | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Oliver Winkler | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Nick Swann | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Dylan Price | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Totals | 81 | 33 | 12 | 10 | 4 | 11-for-24 |
Loudoun Valley Stats
| Loudoun Valley | Points | Rebounds | Assists | Steals | Blocks | FT |
| Landen Conrad | 26 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6-for-7 |
| Joey Danielson | 9 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 4-for-4 |
| John Hasle | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-2 |
| Tristen Conrad | 3 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Tal Rose | 3 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0-for-0 |
| Nathan McCann | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Nathan Boner | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Will Saba | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Macklin Gaffney | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Michael Kabban | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0-for-0 |
| Totals | 50 | 28 | 8 | 5 | 2 | 10-for-13 |