Recruiting
Burleson pipeline tapped by Nevada

By Craig Smith
Seattle Times staff reporter

	Lyndale Burleson
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Another Burleson is headed to Nevada, this one to play basketball.

Lyndale Burleson, the Franklin High School point guard who was instrumental in the Quakers' 2003 Class 4A state championship and past two KingCo 4A Conference titles, will sign a letter-of-intent today to play at the University of Nevada.

His older brother, Nate, played football for the Wolf Pack and had a solid rookie NFL season with the Minnesota Vikings last fall. At Nevada, Nate was a Biletnikoff Award finalist and caught 138 passes in 2002 to rank second on the NCAA all-time season list.

Lyndale averaged 19.1 points, 5.0 assists, 3.4 rebounds and 3.9 steals for Franklin this past season. Rival coaches often praised his defense more than his offense. He was considered one of the best defenders in the state. Burleson was an All-KingCo selection and made one all-state team.

Nevada (25-9) was one of the surprise teams of the NCAA tournament, beating Michigan State and upsetting Gonzaga to reach the round-of-16. At Nevada, Burleson will play for a fellow Franklin graduate, Trent Johnson, who once was a University of Washington assistant.

"I have felt comfortable with the coaching staff and the players through the entire recruiting process," Burleson said. "It is a decision that both my family and myself are excited about."

Franklin coach Jason Kerr said Burleson "will fit in perfectly with coach Johnson and his system."

Burleson, 6 feet 3 inches, played at O'Dea as a freshman and sophomore before transferring to Franklin.

Another Burleson brother, Kevin, played basketball at the University of Minnesota.

Their father, Al, played football at Washington and is best known for returning a clutch interception 93 yards for a touchdown late in the 1975 Apple Cup game.
 
JC player to Gonzaga

Gonzaga, seeking a replacement for graduating big man Cory Violette, today is expected to sign Joao Paul Batista, a 6-9, 270-pound Brazilian post player who averaged 20.2 points and 9.2 rebounds for Barton County (Kan.) Junior College.

Batista committed to the Zags after a recent visit. He shot 62 percent from the field and 77 percent from the free-throw line.

The Zags originally recruited Batista as insurance against junior Ronny Turiaf declaring early for the NBA draft. Gonzaga coaches believe Turiaf will return but decided to offer Batista a scholarship anyway, after a recruiting competition that included Oregon, Minnesota, Nebraska, Kansas, Hawaii and Illinois State.

Notes

• Leanne Bellar of Bellevue High School will run for the Princeton track team next season. Bellar has placed second in the 400-meter run at the past two Class 3A state meets. Bellar also has been a three-year starter for the Bellevue basketball team.

• Kamrica Ary-Turner from Decatur has accepted an athletic/academic scholarship from Evergreen State College, where she will play basketball. She averaged 15.7 points per game this past season and was named to the All-South Puget Sound League South Division first team.

Seattle Times reporters Bud Withers and Sandy Ringer contributed to this report.

Copyright © 2004 The Seattle Times Company