The Burke Bulldogs will head out to face off against the Bellevue East Chieftains at 7:15 p.m. on Tuesday. Burke is strutting in with some offensive muscle as they've averaged 59.3 points per game this season.
Last Wednesday, Burke came up short against Lincoln Northeast and fell 72-59. While losing is never fun, the Bulldogs can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Nebraska basketball rankings (they are ranked 137th, while the Rockets are ranked 22nd).
Burke's defeat shouldn't obscure the performances of Nate Collins, who went 5 of 9 on his way to 17 points, and Nate Vereen-Burton, who went 6 for 14 en route to 15 points. Ryan Rummel also deserves some recognition as he posted his first block of the season.
Meanwhile, Bellevue East can bid farewell to their three-game losing streak thanks to their game on Thursday. They secured a 60-55 W over Lincoln East. The victory almost wasn't to be: the Chieftains were down 38-23 in the second quarter.
Bellevue East's win came from a few key players Burke will need to keep an eye on. One of the most notable was Kris Brown, who posted 13 points and six boards. Isaac Gore was another key player, dropping a double-double on 14 points and ten rebounds.
Bellevue East's win ended an 11-game drought at home dating back to last season and bumped them up to 4-9. As for Burke, they now have a losing record at 7-8.
Rebounding is likely to be a big factor in this contest: Burke has been smashing the glass this season, having averaged 30.1 boards per game. However, it's not like Bellevue East struggles in that department as they've been averaging 26.7 rebounds. With both teams battling to corral missed shots, we'll see if one team can grab an edge.
Burke didn't have too much breathing room in their matchup against Bellevue East in their previous meeting back in January of 2024, but they still walked away with a 69-63 victory. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was Brown, who went 7 of 15 on his way to 21 points. Now that he's got a second chance to win this matchup, will Burke still be able to contain Brown? Check MaxPreps.com after the match to find out.
Article generated by infoSentience based on data entered on MaxPreps
