Pogosyan sparks Nitros

NORTHEAST GLENDALE — With the time Sevan Pogosyan has recently put in refining his skills, it wasn’t too surprising to the Glendale High boys’ basketball player that he was able to put up a quality performance Thursday afternoon with Glendale playing against cross-town rival Hoover.

“One of the things I’ve worked on is being consistent with my shooting,” said Pogosyan, who finished with 24 points — including 18 via the three-point route — to help Glendale pick up a 58-50 win in a pool-play game of the Vaquero Summer Classic at Glendale Community College. “Anytime you play Hoover, it’s going to be a big game, whether it’s during the [regular] season or in the spring or summer.”

Pogosyan made his first three shots, all on three-pointers, giving the guard confidence against an improved Hoover squad that battled throughout the 40-minute contest.

Pogosyan’s third three-pointer gave Glendale a 20-14 lead with 8:20 left in the first half.

“My team set some great picks and got me the ball for open shots,” Pogosyan said. “After I made the first one, something felt good and I got some more confidence with each one made.

“They just found me and I give the team all the credit.”

The Nitros, who won both of their pool-play games Thursday, also received four blocks from center David Yetenikyan.

Hoover got some good efforts, including 19 points from Kyle Bernardo and 11 from Jashley Francisco.

“I thought both teams played hard and they hit a few more shots than we did,” Hoover Coach Jack Van Patten said. “Those were two evenly matched teams.

“They are similar to us and it’s always a good rivalry. I’m impressed with our work ethic and [the Tornadoes] do everything we ask of them. They don’t get down.”

Glendale held a 26-25 halftime lead, as Pogosyan raced down court and made a layup just as time expired on the first half.

Pogosyan remained hot to start the second half, making three straight three-pointers in a 90-second span to extend Glendale’s lead to 35-29 with 16:42 left.

“Sevan has really come along because he’s put in the time and giving the effort as he starts to develop his all-around game,” said Glendale Coach Steve Snodgress, whose team earlier posted a 46-30 pool-play victory against Verdugo Hills and will next meet either Valencia or Pacific League foes Burbank or Burroughs at 3:50 p.m. Saturday. “Today was a good day for us because we played real well in the first game against a Verdugo Hills team that’s very athletic and we were able to respond by playing well defensively.

“With Hoover, it was a game of spurts. We came out hard and then they did the same thing to us. We had to play well until the end. Hoover has gotten a lot better and they are on the right track.”

Francisco scored on a layup to cut Glendale’s lead to 43-38 with 10:50 remaining. Glendale sealed the victory by going on a 9-4 run over the next five minutes.

Hoover will meet Verdugo Hills in a final pool-play game at 3:05 p.m. today.