varsity.roanoke.com

Last summer Northside basketball coach Bill Pope advised rising senior Adam Burroughs to develop a signature move.

Good thing Burroughs didn't bring back the one his stepfather is known for.

You've seen it, right?

Sure you have. It's featured at the end of the local television commercial for the Kirk Family YMCA of Roanoke.

Burroughs' stepdad -- Herbert "Deac" Warren -- touts the benefits of family, friendship and fun and punctuates the message by flipping a basketball over his shoulder and through the hoop without ever looking at the rim.

What would Pope do if Burroughs pulls that shot out of the bag today in the VHSL Group AA Division 3 tournament?

"If that's what we need to win ..." Pope said.

Northside, which faces Brunswick at 5 p.m. today at VCU's Siegel Center, has done plenty of winning in 2009-10 and Burroughs is a big reason for it.

The 5-foot-11 senior point guard leads the Vikings (24-2) in minutes played, assists, steals and 3-point shooting and is second on the team in free-throw percentage and defensive rebounds.

"He is one of the hardest workers I've ever coached," Pope said.

"He's a scorer. He's a passer. He handles the ball really well. And he is just a lock-on defender, and he can do it for long periods of the game. It's one thing to get fired up for a stop or two, but he does it relentlessly over the course of the game."

Burroughs, a two-time All-Blue Ridge District first-team selection, averages 10.2 points per game. He could be the leading scorer on many Timesland teams, but most of them are done for the year.

"He averages eight shots a game," Pope said. "He doesn't shoot much. For this particular team, we've asked him to be that kind of player, to run our offense. You can ask that, but guys have to be able to want to do it and then do it.

"He could have been very hard on us. He could have said, 'Hey, I'm reading the paper about somebody else and they're getting these points. Where's a few more shots for me?' He's never done that.

"It's really a wonderful thing. You want your best players to be your hardest workers and have the best attitude, and we've got that."

Another coach might have been enjoying the benefits of Burroughs' work ethic.

He played middle school basketball in Patrick Henry's program, but came to Northside as a ninth-grader at the urging of his mother, Sarah Cuthbertson.

"I wanted to go to PH," Burroughs said. "I thought I was going to lose some of my friends, but some of them came over here too. It wasn't a big deal to me."

Relocating is nothing new to Burroughs.

He was born in the Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis, then moved to Scotland at age 2 with his mother, a native Scot.

Burroughs and his mom, a physical therapist, came to Virginia when he was 4, eventually settling in Roanoke.

Burroughs carries his the surname of his biological father, with whom he does not have a relationship.

"I don't correspond with him," Burroughs said. "If I meet him, it won't be anytime soon.

"When I'm ready, I guess I'll go meet him."

First, Burroughs is trying to lead Northside's athletic program to its second state title of the school year. The football team won the Division 3 state title in December, but Burroughs missed the game.

"I overslept," Burroughs laughed. "My phone alarm cut off in the middle of the night."

Burroughs was wide awake last fall when Pope had his players show up at the school for 6:30 a.m. weightlifting sessions.

"I don't know that he ever missed, ever," Pope said.

Burroughs also found time for a few quick workouts during his dinner breaks at a local Food Lion, where he worked as a bag boy.

"I would have people all the time say, 'I saw Adam out here,' or 'I saw Adam out there,' " Pope said. "If you only do what is asked of you, you're only going to see minimal improvement. You have to have the desire to get better, and that means going out on your own."

Burroughs likely will play college basketball next year. Division III coaches such as Roanoke's Page Moir, Ferrum's Bill Tharp and Averett's Jimmy Allen have been regulars at Northside games.

Eastern Mennonite's Kirby Dean scouted Burroughs recently and told Pope one thing about the Northside guard impressed him the most.

It had nothing to do with Burroughs' signature move, a hard dribble to the right, a crossover to the left and a pullup jumper.

"His first comment was, 'You took him out a couple times in the first half. I watched him the second time, and you know what, he was standing there cheering for guys,' " Pope related.

"Of course, other guys are doing that too, but all it takes is someone like him to say 'No' to that and you're coming to a screeching halt."

Largely because of Burroughs, Northside's season hasn't.