After a string of three wins, the Highlands Owls's good fortune finally ran out on Friday. They took a serious blow against Burbank, falling 83-40. While losing is never fun, Highlands can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Texas basketball rankings (they are ranked 980th, while Burbank is ranked 356th).
Despite the loss, Highlands still got an impressive performance from Elaya Walker, who dropped a double-double on 14 points and 13 rebounds.
Even though they lost, Highlands smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with ten offensive rebounds. This was only their 21st loss (out of 29 games) when they hit their own glass that hard.
Burbank's victory was a true team effort, with many players turning in solid performances. Perhaps the best among them was Zara'nique Nealy, who almost dropped a triple-double on 15 points, nine assists, and 11 steals. Nealy has been hot recently, having posted three or more steals the last seven times she's played. Another player making a difference was Olivia De la cruz, who dropped a double-double on 24 points and ten rebounds.
Highlands' defeat dropped their record down to 9-26. As for Burbank, they are on a roll lately: they've won 19 of their last 21 games, which provided a nice bump to their 25-8 record this season.
Highlands will head out on the road to square off against Alamo Heights at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. Averaging 54.1 points so far this season, Alamo Heights' high-powered offense has been in full-swing lately, so Highlands better be ready for a challenge. As for Burbank, they will be playing at home against MacArthur at 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday. MacArthur is also coming in off of a big victory, so somebody is in for a big reversal of fortune.
