On Monday, the Nitros held a 51-40 lead entering the fourth quarter before the Indians (10-6, 2-1) cut the lead to 57-55 with 3:50 left. Glendale got a couple of big plays after that to smother Burroughs.
“Very similar game to Friday,” said veteran Glendale Coach Steve Snodgress, who saw Kaloosi grab nine rebounds. “We played well very early, and Burroughs then made a great comeback.
“There are so many teams that are pretty even in our league. We’ve gotten a couple of wins on our home court, but there’s still work that needs to be done.”
The biggest play for Glendale came with 1:12 left, when guard David Mansuryan missed a shot. An alert Eddie Nersisyan scrambled for the offensive rebound and dished the ball to Dehbanian, who made a clutch three-pointer to make it 64-58.
“That play right there was big,” said Snodgress, who got 16 points and 10 rebounds from Mansuryan. “Eddie made the hustle play there and Dion’s been like the cavalry the last couple of games.”
Burroughs, which opened league action with victories against Arcadia and Hoover, couldn’t get closer following Dehbanian’s late heroics.
Dehbanian made a rare four-point basket to give Glendale a 24-14 lead with 7:46 left in the second quarter. The Nitros seemed to pick up added steam after the play, as they built a 42-31 halftime lead.
Kaloosi, who collected four assists and a game-high three blocks, said the Nitros have been able to count on Dehbanian recently.
“Dion’s always open, and he can make shots,” Kaloosi said. “[The four-point play] was his play again.
“Coach Snodgress told us to break the trap, and we went at them the whole game.”
Burroughs narrowed Glendale’s lead to 57-55 on a layup by Chris Morris, who had 16 points. Michael Washington chipped in with 16 points for the Indians, who got 12 rebounds from Matt McQuown.
Kaloosi and Dehbanian had 16 and 15 points, respectively, in the first half.
Glendale, winners of six of its last 10 games, will next compete at 4:45 p.m. Wednesday against visiting Burbank.
“In our league, all of these teams can beat you twice,” said Snodgress, who guided the Nitros to the postseason last year. “We are just going to make sure it doesn’t happen [to us].”
Glendale and Burroughs will again meet at 4:45 p.m. Feb. 2 at Burroughs.
