Gardiner’s Megan Gallagher tries to gain control of a loose ball with Cony defender Sage Fortin during a Class A North basketball game Tuesday in Gardiner. Andy Molloy/Kennebec Journal
GARDINER — Gardiner guard Megan Gallagher entered Tuesday’s basketball game against Cony mired in a shooting slump.
By the end of the night, the slump was a distant memory.
Gallagher hit seven 3-pointers en route to 24 points, shots that proved crucial in getting the Tigers going after a slow start and sparking them to a 55-37 victory over their A North rival.
“She’s been getting frustrated lately because the shots weren’t falling, but we just need her to keep shooting,” Gardiner coach Mike Gray said. “We know she’s going to have games like this, we know she’s going to have 0-for-5 nights. All guards are who are shooters like that. But we know she’s going to be able to step up in a huge game like this.”
Whatever frustrations Gallagher was feeling, she said she made sure to leave at the door.
“I just knew, catch and shoot, don’t think about it,” she said. “And they were falling.”
The night highlighted only part of the value Gallagher brings to the Tigers on a nightly basis. While center Lizzy Gruber gets the attention for her daily double-doubles, Gallagher, part of a strong junior guard trio along with McKenna Johnson and Savannah Brown, fills a role by providing whatever the Tigers need each game. Sometimes, as was the case Tuesday, it’s outside scoring. And sometimes it’s not.
“She and Piper (LaVoie) are our (defenders). When we need to defend a guard, we say ‘Megan and Piper, this is you,'” Gray said. “They both give us huge defense. But then we know with Megan, McKenna’s our point guard, but Megan can kind of be the point guard too. She can also be the shooting guard. She’s just so well-rounded.”
“Defensively, I’m always talking, trying to help my teammates,” Gallagher said. “Because our defense definitely turns into our offense, and we saw that in the second half (Tuesday).”
As a sophomore, Gallagher would get down on herself if she had a low-scoring game. But with another year came a better understanding of just how she can help the Tigers win.
Mt. Ararat freshman guard Kennedy Lampert, left, tries to get past Gardiner junior guard Megan Gallagher during a Class A game Jan. 14 in Topsham. Joe Phelan/Kennebec Journal
“I think it’s definitely mentally, for me,” she said. “You could tell I was young sometimes, mentally. I would check myself out. Tonight, I hit a couple and then I missed one. I think I used to let that bring me down, but I’m getting a lot better mentally, which also comes from my teammates having my back.”
“When she was younger, it was harder for her to understand if she only scored five points, it was a good game,” Gray said. “She knows now she can play a great game that only involves (a few shots). She played well (Monday) and she only had four or six points. But she understands there’s a whole bunch of different things that she brings to the table.”
On Tuesday, however, the Tigers needed her to score. Gardiner struggled from the field in the first half against Cony and was rough from the free-throw line, missing six straight attempts while Cony built a 20-17 lead.
Everyone was out of sorts — except Gallagher. She hit three 3-pointers as part of a 10-point second quarter that worked to offset Indiya Clarke’s 12-point period, and while the Tigers went into halftime down 26-22, it was easy to see how much worse things would have been without the junior’s hot hand.
“They’d take the lead, and she’d get it back for us, or she’d pull us back within a couple of points. None of them were unnecessary. They were all big shots,” Gray said. “You could just tell she was feeling it. She’s a huge presence for us. Once she starts making shots, they can’t cheat on Lizzy as much, they can’t double the post every time.”
That showed as Gruber heated up in the second half to help Gardiner pull away, but she knew the value Gallagher brought — and brings — to the team.
“That was phenomenal. We could just trust to kick it out, and we all knew it was going to happen. That was impressive,” Gruber said. “Megan really always knows what to say. She really reads the defense, their offense, knows where they’re going to be and is able to communicate that to other players on the floor. … She really works hard on using the team as a core.”
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