2-0.
That was the lead Burris had over the undefeated Delta Eagles at the start of Friday’s game. That was also the closest the Owls came to ending the Eagles’ win streak. Delta went on a 17-0 run after that basket and finished the first-quarter with a 23-4 lead.
The Eagles came away with an 83-38 victory and became the state’s only high school boy’s basketball team to finish the regular season unbeaten.
Burris head coach Joseph Anderson brought his team in with the mentality that they were going to win, despite Delta’s perfect record.
“Delta is probably the best team we’ve played all year,” Anderson said. “The one thing that I like about their program is that those kids bought into what the coach was saying.”
Bracken Karnes led the Owls in scoring with 10 points. Seniors Jackson Adamowicz and Alex Halley followed close behind with eight and seven, respectively.
“My teammates look up to me as one of our scorers, and a lot of times when we can’t get things going, they like to hit me and I think they do a great job finding me a lot of times,” Karnes said.
Anderson said he appreciated the role Karnes stepped into after Thursday’s loss to Blackford.
“I think Bracken competed hard at times,” Anderson said. “Jackson [Adamowicz] was just shot after last night’s performance, and Bracken stepped up and came out with a lot of energy. I think if he gets himself in the weight room and stays committed, he’s going to be hard to deal with next year.”
Going into the game, Karnes tried to step up as a leader off the court as well.
“I didn’t see a great attitude going into this game with my teammates, so I tried to really pick us up and try to be a leader,” Karnes said. “I know that right before the game we love to get hyped up and try to go out there, but sometimes it just falls apart.”
Burris struggled in terms of ball handling, recording many turnovers and losing the rebound battle. Anderson said none of what he saw was positive.
With the regular season over, the Owls are looking into sectional play with hopes of making a run.
“I think our sectional is one of the hardest sectionals in the state,” Anderson said. “All we can do is prepare to come out and give our best effort against Hamilton Heights.”
Karnes said he hopes the Owls can surprise a few teams.
“I’m looking forward to making a name for ourselves because our record isn’t the best, but I know that we have the talent and we can put some teams away in sectionals if we step up and take our roles as a team and individually play our best,” Karnes said.
The Owls fell to 5-17 on the year and will play Hamilton Heights Tuesday at 6 p.m. at the New Castle sectional.
Contact Evan Weaver with any comments at erweaver@bsu.edu or on Twitter @evan_weaver7.
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