MOUNT ULLA — It was a recipe for disaster.
Here was the West Rowan girls basketball team, still smarting from Friday’s down-to-the-wire loss at Statesville, locked in 13-13 tie with visiting Mooresville Tuesday night.
And there was leading scorer Hillary Hampton, chained to the Falcon bench with three personal fouls and more than six minutes remaining in the first half.
“Luckily for us that’s happened a couple of times this year,” said West coach Toni Wheeler. “These girls have learned how to deal with that. We may have lost a little offense, but they kept it close until she got back out there.”
West eventually pulled away for a 51-40 North Piedmont Conference victory, improving to 11-3 overall and 2-1 in league play. But it wasn’t as easy as it looked.
“When Hillary went out we had to stay strong,” said teammate Natalie Jones. “We had to play as a team. She’s our leader, but we all fill certain roles when she’s out.”
Kristina Lewis filled a key role, driving for a go-ahead layup with 5:16 remaining in the second quarter. Moments later she grabbed an offensive rebound and made a three-point play, giving the Falcons a 21-15 edge.
“She’s our garbage man,” said Wheeler. “She does a good job of picking up trash. She’s a fighter. She’ll get in there and bump around and pick up a lot of trash.”
Jones, a 5-9 senior forward, picked up a clutch basket when she drove the right baseline and hit an eight-foot set shot that provided a 24-19 halftime lead.
Hampton, meanwhile, watched from a ringside seat as Lindsay Gay and Blair Harkey directed the West offense. “I thought they did a great job,” she said. “They stepped it up and played like leaders.”
It was Hampton’s turn in the second half. She made her first basket on a short bank shot from the right side with 5:36 left in the third quarter, then followed with consecutive layups as West extended its lead to 33-21.
“We had a chance to make it close but didn’t take advantage,” said Mooresville coach Craig Stewart. “The problem was our best player (Chiffine Reid) went out the same time as Hampton. We lost her athletic ability. The girls that came in, they’re just not her. They don’t have the whole thing.”
West seemed to after Jones nailed a 12-foot set shot from the left side, giving the Falcons a 44-29 lead with 3:41 to play. But Mooresville (1-12, 0-4 NPC) responded with a 9-0 run to inch within six points.
“Ah, I wasn’t worried,” said Wheeler. “I knew we’d find a way to win it.”
They did — without the benefit of another field goal. Freshman Brittany Roberson converted two free throws with 33 seconds to go and Hampton and Jones combined for five more in the waning seconds.
“I don’t think we played our best,” Hampton explained after netting 15 of her game-high 17 points in the second half. “But coming off the loss to Statesville, it was good to show we weren’t going to lay down. We were gonna keep fighting. And we did.”
MOORESVILLE (40) — Davis 16, Reid 6, Andrews 6, Duquette 4, Alexander 3, Moon 2, Arounerang 2, Broach 1.
WEST ROWAN(51) — Hampton 17, Lewis 10, Jones 10, White 6, Roberson 3, Harkey 3, Hartsell 2.
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