Gallagher scores 37 as Athens Drive girls basketball surprises Apex
Stayed tuned, Southwest Wake Athletic Conference, the Robin Gallagher Show is coming your way.
The sophomore wing player did a little bit of everything Friday night as Athens Drive rolled past Apex 67-54. Gallagher scored a career-high 37 points, all while directing the Jaguars offense, helping on defense and crashing the backboard.
“Insane,” Athens coach Dayna Jordan said of Gallagher’s game. “She’s remarkable on both ends of the court. She rebounds the ball extremely well, runs the offense, runs the defense. She’s a diamond in the rough.”
Gallagher had 19 points at halftime and didn’t let up. She made two 3-pointers in the second half as Athens (4-12, 4-5 SWAC) kept Apex at bay.
“At one point I started to feel like I was gelling a little bit,” Gallagher said. “Maybe partway through the second quarter, I started feeling my shot and it kept going from there. ... It feels great, but it’s not just me. My teammates got me the ball, we worked well together, we communicated well. It was an all-around good game by my team.”
Apex (6-10, 5-4) has lost five in a row since losing point guard Madison Hawley to a knee injury. One of the area’s top scorers, Elle Hepburn, did her best to keep the Cougars in the game with 30 points, but Apex struggled to hit shots Friday night.
“(Hawley’s) a phenomenal perimeter defender,” Cougars coach Isaac Bristol said. “It totally changed our dynamic the last couple weeks. I thought we had some really good looks tonight, but they didn’t fall. We were 1 for 17 from 3... But I’ve got to give it to Robin. She had a phenomenal night. She stayed aggressive the entire night and kept battling.”
Turning point
A Josie Tarlton bucket got Apex within two, 34-32, to start the third quarter, but Athens went on a 13-2 run to take control. Gallagher hit a 3 and a driving basket during the spree, closed by Kayla Aycock’s 3-pointer with 1:22 to go in the third.
They said it
“She couldn’t miss a basket,” Jordan said of Gallagher.
Three to know
Robin Gallagher, Athens Drive: She scored 13 consecutive points for Athens over the third and fourth quarter in a variety of ways: An offensive rebound and putback, an inside move, off an inbound play, a 3 and two driving baskets.
Elle Hepburn, Apex: The senior more than topped her 21.7 points per game average, getting a 3, nine other baskets and hitting 10 of her 12 free throws.
“Elle battled for us,” Bristol said.
Sanara Sidney, Athens Drive: The senior guard came off the bench to score 14 points.
“She was really aggressive and got quite a few points from the free throw line,” Bristol said. “She really worked and hustled tonight.”
By the numbers
24: Number of fouls called on Apex. Tarlton fouled out, and Hepburn and starter Madi Field had four. Many were touch fouls on the perimeter as the officials called the game close.
“That really, really changed the dynamics of my rotation,” Bristol said.
Needs improvement
Bristol challenged his team to step up over the remainder of their schedule.
“I told them we’ve got to make a decision: Are we going to be the phoenix and rise from the flames, or are we going to sit here in the ashes?” Bristol said. “We’ve got the talent, there’s no question.”
This story was originally published January 15, 2016 at 11:23 PM with the headline "Gallagher scores 37 as Athens Drive girls basketball surprises Apex."