Key Question Unanswered in Burbank Loss

There were two questions to be answered after Tuesday’s Foothill League game between Burbank and Schurr.

One had an easy solution. Where did a snake found in the coaches’ office at Schurr High after the game came from? Probably from the nearby hills.

Answering the question of where the Burbank offense disappeared in its 50-47 loss at Schurr, was not as easy.

The Bulldogs made only 18 of 63 field-goal attempts, leaving Coach John Downum puzzled.

“We were getting good shots, nice follow shots, but we just weren’t able to get them to go,” Downum said.

Senior forward Mark Nielsen, offered a possible solution. Three players--forward Mike Nash, reserve Darren Moore and Nielsen--were sick with the flu.

“We all had to go home from school today,” said Nielsen, who finished with a game-high 16 points. “After the first couple times down the court, we were all exhausted.”

Only three-point shots by Nielsen and Nash in the game’s final moments made the score close. The Spartans led, 29-17, at halftime. During the first half the Bulldogs (10-7, 2-2) made just 7 of 27 shots, including 1 of 5 from three-point range.

“We missed I don’t know how many easy layups in the first half,” said Downum. “If we make a couple of those, it’s a different game.”

In the first half, Nielsen made 3 of 9 shots, but that didn’t keep Downum from going to his leading scorer in the second half.

“He struggled in the first half, but he came back. I didn’t have any hesitation going to him,” Downum said.

Until the three-pointers by Nielsen and Nash toward the end of the game, the Bulldogs were unable to get closer than seven points. Nielsen missed a pair of free throws with 2:45 left in the third quarter, which could have brought Burbank to within six.

Downum still thinks Burbank has a shot at the league title.

“I’ve said this all along that I think the league winner will have at least two losses,” he said. “And I think that we have a shot to win all of our games at home.”

Schurr Coach Tom Thompson, whose team is 13-3 and 3-1 in league play, seems to agree.

“It was a close game, but I’m not looking forward to going to their place,” Thompson said.

Nash finished with 15 points, but the second-highest scoring Bulldog was reserve Hassan Kobaissi, who had six points.

Paul Chavez had 15 for Schurr, and teammates Adrian Rodriguez and Thai Ngo added 12 and 10, respectively.