By Rick Assad
Leandra Nazarian was seemingly everywhere and did everything on the floor during Burbank High’s 50-38 victory over visiting Maranatha on Tuesday night in a nonleague girls’ basketball game.
The senior point guard sank nine shots from the field and finished with a game-best 22 points.
For the evening, Nazarian drilled three baskets from three-point range and was an efficient passer and was often leading the fast break.
Burbank (4-1) made 44.8 percent of its attempts from the field in the opening half on 13 of 29 but slipped to 29.1 percent in the second half after making seven of 24.
After five games, the Bulldogs are off to a solid start and should be much-improved under the guidance of first-year coach Alexa Mirzaian.
The Bulldogs, who finished 37.7 from the floor after making 20 of 53, led from start to finish and controlled the pace of the game and held a rebound edge over the Minutemen, grabbing 44 rebounds to 34 for Maranatha.
Behind eight points from Nazarian in the first quarter, Burbank, which made eight of 13 shots for 61.5 percent in the frame, led 19-5 heading to the second quarter.
Sophomore point guard/shooting guard Andrea Aparicio chimed in with six points in the initial frame but didn’t score for the rest of the game.
Aparicio’s hoop with 5:44 remaining in the first quarter handed the Bulldogs a 9-0 advantage.
Nazarian added eight points in the second period as the Bulldogs, who sank five of 16 attempts for 31.2 percent, secured a 29-17 advantage at halftime.
When Nazarian tossed in a basket with 47.2 second left in the second period, Burbank was in front 29-17.
Nazarian’s 16 points led all scorers in the opening half, and she nailed two from three-point range.
Nazarian’s third period saw her tally five points as Burbank nailed four of 10 attempts for 40 percent and built a commanding 41-25 lead heading to the fourth quarter.
Senior center Lauren Navarro, who was straddled with two personal fouls in the first period, tossed in four of her six points in the fourth period as her team connected on three of 14 from the field for 21.4 percent after tallying two points in the third frame.
Two Minutemen scored in double figures, and one was junior small forward Aleen Avannessian, who finished with a team-high 19 points, and also nailed four of Maranatha’s seven three-pointers.
The other player who tallied double figures was senior guard Charlotte Yee, who tossed in 15 points, including 10 points in the second half.
Maranatha (1-4) had only six players in uniform and made 15 of 56 for 26.7 percent from the field overall.
The Minutemen hit seven of 27 for 29.5 percent in the opening half and eight of 29 for 27.5 percent in the second half.
Senior power forward/center Taliyah Herdsman added nine points for the Bulldogs and five points came in the first period.
Also scoring for Burbank were junior point guard/shooting guard Yvette Soukiazian with five points that included a trey in the third period and a bucket in the fourth quarter and sophomore point guard Natalie Megerdichian, who dropped in two points in the second quarter.
