The West Valley basketball team stormed to a 16-5 lead five minutes in and never looked back in a season-opening 123-63 win over visiting Solano Wednesday afternoon. Seven WVC players, led by Malik Patton with 20, reached double figures, while the vaunted Viking defense held the Falcons to four points in the first ten minutes of the second half. 

WVC, the two-time defending Coast Conference champions and 2022 state runner-up, outscored Solano by 30 in each half. A 66-36 halftime lead was paced by 12 points from Patton, 10 apiece from Jeremiah Dargan and Ignacio Bettinelli, and nine each from Elijah Mahi and Noah Yang.

A 57-27 second half was highlighted by the stingy defense and a tough ten points in traffic from Harry Nauci. Eight points in the final three minutes from Ryan MacArthur sealed the deal.

Dargan followed Patton in the scoring column with 14, while Bettinelli, Mahi and Yang chipped in 13 each. Ariya Briscoe and Nauci had 10 apiece.