CONCORD — An opening night of comebacks for the West Rowan girls.
Coach Toni Wheeler, back as head hoops coach after stepping down in 1997, did one heck of a job in her “debut,” shouting herself hoarse and jumping around as much as that famous Falcon boys coach.
Wheeler’s team was even better at coming back. The Falcons appeared to be blown right out of the gym twice but eventually knocked off highly regarded Central Cabarus 71-66.
The result was surprising because West lost five of the top six scorers from last season’s 19-9 squad.
Fortunately for Wheeler, West still has tenacious all-county sophomore guard Hillary Hampton, who poured in a career-high 29 points. And West still has veteran Natalie Jones, who added 14 points and shot 8-for-10 from the line. The Falcons also have a tall, smooth freshman named Brittany Roberson, who will be a star. Roberson scored 18 points, 14 of them in the second half, and pulled down 10 boards.
The Falcons entered a packed house at old rival Central with only three girls who had ever been in varsity game.
Early, the Falcons played like they’d never met. Sweaty palms, happy feet, airballs and helpless, wide-eyed stares were everywhere. West couldn’t hit a layup, bricked its free throws, committed nine quick turnovers and was in a 17-4 hole before it could blink.
“We had a terrible first quarter,” said Wheeler. “We looked lost.”
“At 17-4,” said Hampton, “I’m thinking it’s going to be a long season.”
The game was nearly history before West settled in, but Central ran into foul trouble. Veteran Viking guards Evan Miller and Rachel Van De Venter had three fouls apiece by the middle of the second quarter and had to sit.
“We got them in foul trouble by being aggressive and taking it to them,” said Wheeler.
West was down just five at halftime, even though it didn’t make a shot outside the paint for the first 15 minutes.
The third quarter began as a rewind of the first. With Miller scoring 10 dazzling points, Central rolled ahead 47-30.
But then soph guard Lyndsey Gay sprinted through Central’s press and hit ahead to Roberson. Roberson made the layup and, more importantly, drew the fourth foul on Miller with 3:41 left in the third. By the end of the quarter, West, gaining confidence by the second, had scratched back to 53-47.
West tied the game at 55, but Central answered with the next eight points for a 63-55 edge.
Could the Falcons rally a third time? They could — and would.
“We just kept fighting back and playing together,” said Jones. “We played with heart. We wanted to prove to everyone we’ve got a good team.”
They proved it. The Falcons ran off 10 straight points, the final two on clutch free throws by Jones, for a 65-63 lead.
Central’s last edge came at 66-65 at the 1:40 mark on a layup by Van De Venter.
Central was still clinging to that lead with a minute left when an errant pass sent the ball into the Viking backcourt. The closest Central player expected a backcourt violation to be called, but instead Hampton swooped in and took the ball for a layup.
“If she wasn’t going to go get it, then I was,” said Hampton.
After another Viking turnover, Wheeler called timeout, put the ball in Hampton’s hands and spread the floor. With 35 seconds left, Hampton darted to her left down the lane, drew a crowd and whipped the ball to Roberson. The freshman made a tough catch and a massive layup for a 69-66 lead.
“They knew I’d try to drive and when I did, a second defender came to me,” said Hampton. “I saw Brittany and made the dish. Sometimes people aren’t ready for that pass, but Brittany was. She really came though.”
Hampton added two free throws with 17 seconds left to clinch the victory.
“We just never gave up,” said Hampton. “We just kept running and running. And at the end, we wore them down.”
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NOTES:Senior Mandy Massey, West’s third veteran, yanked down 11 boards. ... Soph guard Blair Harkey had a huge impact defensively. ... West scored 51 in the second half.
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Contact Mike London at 704-797-4259 or mlondon@salisburypost.com
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