Burnett Leads Fairfax Over Bulldogs

Fairfax needed a win over Stone Bridge Friday night in hopes of improving its district seed and hosting its first game in the upcoming tournament. The Rebels got just that as Zack Burnett led his team with a game-high 21 points to edge the Bulldogs and spoil their Senior Night with the win, 62-56.

Stone Bridge senior Ryan Lowdermilk got hot in the second half, punctuated by a three to cut the Fairfax lead in half with two minutes left in the third quarter. However, Burnett and Spencer MacLeod dug deep, penetrating the paint through Bulldog defenders to stretch the lead to seven points off short jump shots and quick layups with 3:03 remaining in the final quarter.

Stone Bridge’s Jack Wohlfert fought it out under the boards for eight points, eight rebounds, three blocks, and two steals on the night. He cut the lead to four a minute later with a six-footer off the glass, but that is as close as the Bulldogs would get. Down by six with 1:05 left to play, the Bulldogs were forced to foul and watch as Burnett and company drained their free throws and took home the victory, 62-56.

Before the game, Stone Bridge coach Sonny Green said his team’s chemistry has improved, but it was crucial to try and get a win against Fairfax.

“We are starting to establish an identity both offensively and defensively,” he said. “We have a lot of people who can score, but it depends how well we can rebound. It is very important because basketball is a tournament sport and you want to be playing your best this time of year.”

The Bulldogs came out of the gates strong as Danny Eleazer scored four points quickly to give Stone Bridge a slight first-quarter lead. Both teams drove hard to the basket and were able to find holes in each other’s defense. After trading buckets, Fairfax began to shut down both Lowdermilk and Mike Hamrick on the perimeter, allowing them to combine for only four shots and two points in the first half. The Rebels ended the quarter with the lead, 16-13.

Stone Bride began to miss shots from outside and easy layups, while Fairfax shot with accuracy and gradually increased its lead in the second quarter.

“We just lost our composure and missed some easy lay ups,” Wohlfert said. “We could do better than this and we could have won this game. We have a game tomorrow and we are going to leave our hearts on the floor and hopefully get the win.”

Burnett set up from the outside, then jammed his way through the lane for the score and followed it up with a 3-pointer with 19 seconds left in the half to head into the locker room up, 32-24.

The second half played out as the first with missed opportunities inside from the Bulldogs, while MacLeod, who went 4-for-7 for 10 points, hit mid-range jumpers, and Burnett scored from all over the floor. However, late in the second half, John Allen heated up from off the bench for Stone Bridge, going 4-for-9 for 12 points and seven boards to rally the Bulldogs and give them hope in the remaining minutes.

Lowdermilk added to the momentum, as he scored 12 of his 13 points in the second half. But Fairfax pulled it out to improve to 8-4 in the Liberty District while Stone Bridge fell to 3-7.

Allen said his team missed some shots and Fairfax just played better.

“There were a couple of 50-50 shots we should have got,” Allen said. “They ran a lot of zone and capitalized on their opportunities more than we did, so I give them a lot of credit.”

Burnett said they took away the Bulldogs game and was proud his team won after a tough loss earlier in the week.

“They tried to speed up the game so we just got the ball across half court and slowed it down, ran our offense and executed,” Burnett said. “It is a pretty big win. A couple days ago we lost to T.J. so to come back and win is pretty good.

“It’s a big win to get the momentum going,” he said. “We think we can win the district and we are going to try and just get going.”

Rebels coach P.J. Kelly said it took a while, but his team rebounded well and he and his team believes they can win the district tournament.

“It wasn’t just the defense and rebounding and even though it was ugly earlier for a while late in the game it was much better,” he said. “We kept reminding the guys to box out and get the rebound. They have responded, and it looks like we are going to host that first round game and that’s what we are looking for.”

Fairfax plays at home against South Lakes on Tuesday.