Nevada

Let them eat memes • Nevada Current

Published

3 days ago

January 23, 2025

What do Donald Trump and Joe Lombardo have in common?

If you said they both gave speeches within one week of each other in which neither of them mentioned the price of eggs, you’re right.

But while both men demonstrate they have higher priorities than your grocery bill, they’re not entirely two (overpriced) peas in a pod.

“I was saved by God to make America great again,” Trump explained in his speech.

The only non-corporeal source of salvation Lombardo invoked was an imaginarily benevolent “Nevada Way.”

And that’s not the only difference between the president and the governor.

In his speech, Lombardo boasted of presenting “a budget that’s centered and balanced,” but followed that up by firing his budget director because the budget Lombardo had sent to state lawmakers was unconstitutionally unbalanced. And then Lombardo tried to let his chief of staff take all the blame. Classy!

Trump, by contrast, has been following up on his speech by carpet-bombing the nation with what he calls “executive orders,” even though a good deal of them aren’t so much specific orders as nebulous executive thoughtlets of things Trump thinks it would be nice for somebody to do someday if someone in the government Trump’s underlings are in the process of depopulating can figure out how to do them.

Trump’s executive “order” on lowering prices to consumers falls into that category.

Trump & eggs

“President Donald J. Trump Delivers Emergency Price Relief For American Families to Defeat the Cost-of-Living Crisis” reads the title of one of Trump’s “Presidential Actions” issued Monday.

Emergency price relief?

Cool.

How’s he going to do it?

Glad you asked.

“I hereby order the heads of all executive departments and agencies to deliver emergency price relief, consistent with applicable law, to the American people,” the order reads.

Okay, how are the department heads going to do it?

By “pursuing appropriate actions” to lower the costs of housing, health care, and appliances, and eliminating “harmful, coercive ‘climate’ policies that increase the costs of food and fuel,” the “order” reads.

The aforementioned heads are supposed to report their progress in 30 days. And then again 30 days after that. And then every 30 days until …consumer morale improves?

Two days later Trump issued another executive “order,” with the exact same title. It reiterates all the original’s vague nothings but has additional whining about Biden that somebody probably forgot to put in the first time.

Unless you want to count the iffy-at-best proposition that petroleum companies (or more to the point, their shareholders) want to heavily invest in new oil & gas production, the “emergency price relief” orders have no details for how to actually relieve prices. And even if you share Trump’s faith that there’s nothing drill baby drill can’t do, the “emergency” order is devoid of any measures that could be described as “emergency” actions.

Lombardo & eggs

Lombardo’s strategy for addressing consumer costs likewise flirts with nonexistence.

“We all know working families need to catch a break,” Lombardo said at one point in his address. In the same vein, a few sentences later he declared “prices are higher because of the compounding effects of inflation,” demonstrating what a great sleuth he must have been back when the former lawman was on the force.

The governor presented some housing and health care initiatives of questionable efficacy as if they might someday translate into savings for households. But that’s a stretch, to put it charitably.

The “break” that he can bestow on consumers, Lombardo added, is “the promise of not raising taxes on hard-working Nevada families.”

That’s the least he can do.

No, seriously, not raising taxes is literally the very least the governor, and the Democrats in the Legislature, can do, because doing that would be doing nothing at all, when in fact something should be done.

Nevada’s tax system is upside down — the less money you make, the larger percentage of it you pay in taxes. Turning the tax system right side up — and actually lowering the costs of many consumer goods in the process by cutting the sales tax rate — is not rocket science.

It’s politically hard though. So Nevada elected officials in both parties rarely even indicate an awareness of Nevada’s inflation-compounding tax system, let alone talk about it.

Crypto & eggs

After Trump proclaimed that he is God’s holy vessel on Earth, he (Trump, not God) signed an executive order directing the Department of Interior to rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America. Later that day while heralding Trump as civilization’s savior, Elon Musk gave what he (Musk, not God) insists was absolutely positively not a Nazi salute.

What does all of that (and so much more) have in common with the policy agenda in Nevada?

If you said none of it will bring down the price of eggs, you’re right.

But while the executive branches in Washington and Carson City are both AWOL on consumer prices, there are of course many differences between the nation’s capital and the Reno exurb.

For instance, Nevada politics and policy in the next several months promise to fail to bring down the price of eggs while being rather dreary.

National politics and policy, by contrast, promises to fail to bring down the price of eggs by providing a plurality (though not a majority) of the U.S. electorate something it perhaps craves even more than lower prices: A freak show.

In an interview with Time magazine after the election Trump confessed that he might not be able to bring down prices because that’s hard, even though on the campaign trail he suggested it would be easy peasy because he’s TRUMP!

So lifelike. (Image from Trump’s meme coin website)

But for Nevada families who, as Lombardo put it, “need to catch a break,” maybe there is a silver lining.

A couple days before his inauguration Trump rolled out a crypto meme coin, along with artwork depicting an image of Trump that is uncannily realistic if Trump was only 40 years younger and had Ryan Gosling’s body. The meme coin’s website warns it is not an investment opportunity “of any type,” but that’s just a thing Trump’s lawyers put on there so if you lose all your money it’s not Trump’s fault, which seems silly because nothing has been or ever can be Trump’s fault (there’s probably an executive order that says that, but if not there’s a definitely a Supreme Court ruling that does).

So perhaps this is really Trump’s plan, as well as the break Lombardo says Nevadans need to catch: Working families will get rich trading Trump’s crypto coins and never have to worry about the price of eggs again.

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Nevada

Nevada high school girls basketball team refutes governing body's forfeiture ruling

Published

2 hours ago

January 27, 2025

Press Room

Nevada high school girls basketball team refutes governing body's forfeiture ruling

A Nevada high school girls basketball team is contesting a forfeiture of win ruling by the Nevada Interscholastic Athletic Association. Centennial, ranked first in the Nevada On3 Composite Team Rankings, must forfeit 18 wins due to an ineligible player.

Zoning issues led the NIAA to bestow the unfortunate decision on the Bulldogs. As KNTV 13’s Nick Walters wrote, the player in question was a player who lived within the school’s zoning area and played for the football team since his sophomore year.

However, Centennial argues that there’s an issue regarding the NIAA’s Register My Athlete system, which they use to track player eligibility. While the Bulldogs are appealing against the decision, they’re finding it hard to keep their spirits up because the same board members will review their case.

Centennial’s head coach, Karen Weitz, expressed her dismay about the decision. She also lamented the fact that they have no way to verify a player’s eligibility. Instead, they rely on their administration to say that a certain player is cleared.

If the decision sticks, the Bulldogs will go from 19-1 to 2-18. They were 17-1 before their January 10 victory over Coronado. Likewise, the NIAA forfeited their Las Vegas Prep Tournament championship last December.

However, Centennial can still qualify for the Nevada high school girls basketball playoffs if they win their six remaining games. Sweeping their schedule improves their record to 8-18, putting them among one of the eight playoff teams from Class 5A Southern. The Bulldogs finished their 2023-24 season at 19-6. However, they lost in the Class 5A state championship game against Bishop Gorman.

The On3 Composite High School Football Team Ranking is a proprietary algorithm that compiles rankings listed in the public domain by respected High School media and data companies. It includes Massey, Max Preps, Cal Preps, ESPN, and SI, creating the industry’s most comprehensive and geographically balanced High School Team Ranking.

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Nevada

Centennial wins girls wrestling region title — RESULTS, PHOTOS

Published

14 hours ago

January 26, 2025

Press Room

Centennial wins girls wrestling region title — RESULTS, PHOTOS

Centennial’s girls wrestling team lost the Southern Region team title to SLAM Academy by one point at last year’s region meet.

This year, things went in Centennial’s favor. And with a little more comfortable margin.

Centennial won the Southern Region team title with a score of 226 points at Saturday’s girls wrestling region qualifier at Bonanza. SLAM Academy was second with 190.5 points, followed by Western (125.5 points) and Desert Oasis (124).

“We were fully focused,” Centennial coach Kevin Caruso said. “They come in, they’re prepared each day, they’re ready, they’re hungry. They wanted it.”

Centennial had two wrestlers win individual region titles, Sandilynn Paopao at 140 pounds and Kitana Leafaatoto at 235 pounds.

“I can’t say enough good things (about Paopao and Leafaatoto),” Caruso said. “They come out and go after it. They were ready for the moment and performed when the lights were on and it was time for the finals. They were ready.”

The girls state invitational is Feb. 7 and 8 at Rafter 3C Arena in Fallon. It will be the third year of the girls wrestling state invitational, which includes all classifications.

The top four wrestlers in each weight class from the region tournament qualify for the eight-wrestler individual bracket at the state invitational.

SLAM Academy had five wrestlers win individual titles — Bertha Cabrera (105 pounds), Emma Albanese (115), Noelani Lutz (120), Mika Yoffee (125) and Billie Bonwell (170).

Paopao dominated all four of her matches at the regional tournament. She won the state title at 145 pounds last year and is a two-time regional champion.

“I’m so happy that we got to feel accomplished as a team and not just as individuals,” Paopao said. “We needed that win over SLAM. It has us ready for state for sure. We’re feeling pumped. This year we dominated. It’s nothing but smiles.”

Leafaatoto, in her first year with Centennial, is now a three-time regional champion. She won the state title at 235 pounds in 2023 with Western.

“It’s very special,” Leafaatoto said. “I’m glad that they accepted me as their own and treated me as their own instead of treating me different. This year has been going very great.”

At last year’s state meet, SLAM Academy won the title with 113 points. Centennial was second with 87.5 points.

“This showed us that we’re doing the right things,” Caruso said. “I’m very proud and impressed with these girls and the work ethic they have.”

The Class 5A, 3A and 2A boys state meets are also scheduled for Feb. 7 and 8 at Fallon. The 4A state boys meet is Feb. 15 at Western. The boys regional finals for 5A through 2A will take place Feb. 1.

Championship match results

100 pounds: Anna Winward (Moapa Valley) def. Kaydyn Brooks (Centennial)

105: Bertha Cabrera (SLAM Academy) def. Hazel Garcia (Desert Oasis)

110: Raylynn Woods (Virgin Valley) def. Tylene Tran (Centennial)

115: Emma Albanese (SLAM Academy) def. Hannah Silbernagel (Centennial)

120: Noelani Lutz (SLAM Academy) def. Chanity Faleto (Liberty)

125: Mika Yoffee (SLAM Academy) def. Stella Dymon (Bonanza)

130: Makayla Power (Shadow Ridge) def. Mya Bardoni (Centennial)

135: I’yanna Jones (Western) def. Madison Worden (Centennial)

140: Sandilynn Paopao (Centennial) def. Noelani Almogela (Desert Oasis)

145: Evelina Juzenaite (Desert Oasis) def. Yulliana Quiroga (Liberty)

155: Addison Canja (Cimarron-Memorial) def. Jordan Hunter (Western)

170: Billie Bonwell (SLAM Academy) def. Savanna Abbott (Foothill)

190: Kaija Ashcroft (Green Valley) def. Lady Josel Muro (Valley)

235: Kitana Leafaatoto (Centennial) def. Isabella Gray (Canyon Springs)

Contact Alex Wright at awright@reviewjournal.com. Follow @AlexWright1028 on X.

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Nevada

Season-low: San Diego State throttles Nevada, 69-50; Pack drops to 3-6 in conference

Published

22 hours ago

January 26, 2025

Press Room

Season-low: San Diego State throttles Nevada, 69-50; Pack drops to 3-6 in conference

A dismal shooting performance and lackluster defense led to Nevada’s worst defeat of the season.

San Diego State raced past Nevada, 69-50, on Saturday in front off 9,058 fans, many of whom left midway through the second half of the game.

The 50 points narrowly missed being the lowest points scored by a Wolf Pack team at Lawlor, 46.

Justin McBride led the Wolf Pack with 13 points, Kobe Sanders had 12 and Xavier DuSell added 11 points. Sanders had a team-high eight rebounds.

The Pack made just 15-of-51 field goals (29 percent). The 29 percent is the worst shooting performance by a Nevada basketball team since March 2015. The Pack hit 5-of-26 from the 3-point line. Nevada dropped to 3-6 in the Mountain West, 11-9 overall.

Nevada coach Steve Alford said the Pack needs to play faster and looser.

“We’ve got to be tougher mentally,” Alford said. “When you’re going to blow to blow like that, and all of a sudden they go on a 13-0 run. We’ve got to be tougher enough, to where they score twice in a row they don’t score three times in a row. We don’t have that cohesiveness and that toughness that we’ve got to have.”

He said the Pack needs to learn to play through bad shots and stop worrying about how they are doing offensively.

Magoon Gwath led San Diego State with 15 points and Taj DeGourville had 14 as the Aztecs improved to 5-4 in the Mountain West, 13-5 overall. Gwath also had 13 rebounds.

The Wolf Pack’s previous season-low in points scored this season was 57 in a 68-57 loss to Washington State on Dec. 2.

Key Stats

The 15-of-51 shooting tells the tale, as does points in the paint as the Aztecs had 36 there, to 12 for the Wolf Pack.

Nevada was OK from the free line, hitting 15-of-22 from the stripe, to 6-of-8 for the Aztecs.

San Diego State made 27-of-56 field goals (48 percent) and 9-of-25 from 3-point range.

Each team had 10 turnovers.

First half

San Diego State led 28-21 at the half. The Wolf Pack hit 7-of-23 from the field and was 2-of- 11 from 3-point range. The Aztecs hit 11-of-27 field goals and were 4-13 from the 3-point line.

Veterans

Alford admitted that getting the transfer players to gel with the returners has been tough once the Pack hit conference play.

“It is much more difficult blending those guys than them experiencing it,” he said. “They’re really not as mature as what their age would seem.”

He said the returning players should know what is expected of them and the toughness he wants to see.

Up Next

Nevada next plays at Boise State with tip-off scheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday.

The Broncos are 5-4 in the MW, 13-7 overall after losing to Colorado State, 75-72, on Wednesday (Jan. 22).

Alford said there could be some lineup changes and that everything is on the table.

Around the Mountain West

Also on Saturday, New Mexico beat UNLV, 75-73, Colorado State beat Fresno State, 69-64; Utah State beat Force, 87-58; and San Jose State beat Wyoming, 67-58.