MOUNT ULLA — No one has a problem getting psyched up when the East Rowan and West Rowan girls get together.
But that was bad news as well as good news for the Falcons, who were way, way too fired up.
“We just never could get settled in,” said West coach Toni Wheeler. “We let East dictate everything right from the start. We were just running around and around out there, getting ourselves in terrible defensive position.
“East showed more maturity. They got settled down first.”
Being calm and collected in a hostile environment paid off for the Mustangs in the form of a crucial 67-56 3A North Piedmont Conference road win. The Mustangs forced West to play uphill all night. East (13-2, 3-1) never trailed after Jordan Huffman’s jumper snapped a 13-13 tie a minute into the second quarter.
The game was played with frightening intensity and in front of a frantic house packed to the rafters. Early fouls piled up like autumn leaves for both teams. The whistle blew for personals 25 times in the first half.
West star Hillary Hampton had three fouls with 5:16 left in the first half, but stayed in. Huffman got her third foul two minutes later and sat.
“A lot of fouls were called,” said East coach Randy Bingham. “But there were times when they just let the girls hammer away out there. It was rough. That’s not being critical of the officials. That’s just the nature of this rivalry.”
East finished the first half with a rush, using a pair of huge jumpers by reserve Haley Shaw to claim a 34-23 lead at the break.
“The crowd was huge and the game was hectic,” said East point guard Tiffany Ingold. “But we were able to get under control and play our game.”
Still, things did not look especially rosy for the Mustangs as the fourth quarter got under way. East post players Michelle Haynes, Kelly Kluttz and Huffman had four fouls apiece, while do-everything forward Maggie Rich (23 points, 17 rebounds) had three.
Things looked bleaker still when Hampton (27 points) scored on a driving layup to pull West (11-4, 2-2) within 49-44. That shot sent the bulk of the crowd into a tizzy.
But the next few moments were decisive.
First, Kluttz (seven points, nine rebounds) connected on a follow shot after a wild scramble. Then Falcon forward Natalie Jones, who had sparked her team with a second-half hot streak, exited with her fifth foul.
Beginning with Kluttz’s key bucket, East outscored the Falcons 17-4 on a terrific burst at both ends of the floor. Christal MacLamroc, Huffman and Rich nailed free throws. Then Haynes scored off a steal, and suddenly the Falcons were looking at a huge deficit.
Both Huffman and Haynes eventually fouled out, but the way Kluttz and Shaw were playing off Bingham’s bench, it didn’t matter.
“Kelly played her best game of the year,” said Bingham. “She was so active, so aggressive. She got after it.”
“Kelly’s worked hard to get where she’s at,” praised Ingold. “We’ve got faith in her and all the subs now. We know when they come in, it’s still the same game.”
Trailing in that fourth quarter, West had to abandon its 1-3-1 zone for man-to-man. At first, the change in defenses proved effective, but Ingold pulled her team together and started carving the Falcons up for easy layups.
“We rattled them a little at first with the man-to-man, but we don’t play it enough to be any good,” said Wheeler. “That Ingold did a good job taking care of the ball. She’s a pure point guard, something we don’t have. Every time it looked like we were gonna get back in it, she got someone a good shot. And they hit it.”
East’s dominance was so thorough down the stretch that Bingham got to do something he’d never expected to be able to do in this lifetime. He got to clear his bench in the Falcons’ gym.
For the last 40 seconds, Ingold, MacLamroc and Rich joined the fouled-out Haynes and Huffman on the sidelines. There they celebrated and watched the reserves finish off the party.
“ This is a huge win for us,” said Ingold. “We’re shooting for No. 1, and this should spark us and give us confidence.”
The loss was equally huge for West, which could ill afford a home loss in its bid to secure one of the NPC’s three state playoff berths.
“We were just so overanxious,” sighed Wheeler. “We played hard, we got after it, but we didn’t play well at all.”
NOTES:Even though Hampton scored 27, East did a good job on her when it mattered, especially Ingold, Playing the top of the Mustangs’ 1-2-2, she was usually able to shut off Hampton’s driving lanes to the basket. “It’s already been a long road with me and her,” Ingold said of her fellow sophomore. “She’s a great player and she’s got a great spin move. I just try to move my feet and if she gets by, I trust my teammates to stop her.” ... Freshman Brittany Roberson scored 12 for West. ... Ingold tossed in eight big points after scoring only seven in her previous six games.
EAST ROWAN (67) — Rich 23, MacLamroc 10, Huffman 9, Ingold 8, Kluttz 7, Haynes 5, Shaw 4, Wood 1, Hall, Ludwig, Brown, Mundy.
WEST ROWAN (56) — Hampton 27, Roberson 12, Jones 9, Hartsell 4, Harkey 3, Massey 1, Gay, Lewis, White.
East Rowan 13 21 19 14 — 67
West Rowan 6 17 15 18 — 56
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Contact Mike London at 704-797-4259 or mlondon@salisburypost.com
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