WEEKEND SPORTS
Rowe comes up big for Tigers in victory
Laurel Highlands freshman phenom Rodney Gallagher already has established himself as one of the top prospects in the area — the type of player fans from all over town venture to go see.
If a game Friday night at McKeesport was any indication, the Tigers have a freshman of their own who might soon start to garner similar attention.
McKeesport freshman Travarese Rowe scored 16 points and looked like the second coming of Tigers star senior Deamontae Diggs, who led all players on the night with 28 points in McKeesport’s 81-77 win. Junior Robert Robinson also chipped in 17 points to help the Tigers (8-7, 52) take over sole possession of second place in Class 5A Section 1.
“A lot of people probably came to see their freshman, but they left talking about our freshman,” McKeesport coach Kevin Kovach said.
According to Diggs, who dominated in the low post from start to finish, Rowe has all the necessary tools to become a star.
“He looks up to me, for real. I teach him a lot in practice. We teach each other moves,” Diggs said. “I told him, ‘You can be better than me.’”
Gallagher scored only five points in the first half, but finished the game with 21 as he brought the Mustangs (9-5, 4-3) back from 18 points down late in the third quarter to within three late in the fourth.
“When you’re happy about keeping a kid to 21 points, I think that says a lot about him,” Kovach said. “He was the focus of everything, obviously.”
The Tigers couldn’t have asked for a better start to the game, as Robinson poured in 12 points in the opening quarter to help them open up a commanding 24-8 lead. Laurel Highlands started to slowly battle back, but McKeesport kept control without letting too much momentum slip away, maintaining a double-digit advantage and taking a 39-29 lead into the break.
The third quarter was more of the same as the Tigers momentarily threatened to run away with the game after a five-point possession midway through the second quarter.
Robinson made 2 of 3 free throws after drawing a foul on a 3point attempt, then McKeesport secured the offensive rebound and Rowe drained a 3-pointer to make it 54-36 with 3:14 left in the third.
The game appeared to be all but over, but Gallagher kept the Mustangs hopes alive with two fastbreak layups late in the third quarter — including one just as time expired — and the Tigers took a 61-49 lead into the fourth.
Gallagher made another impressive layup on a fastbreak to make it 65-55 with six minutes left, banking it high off the glass and over the outstretched arm of Diggs. One more fastbreak score by Gallagher cut McKeesport’s lead to 71-64 midway through the fourth, and Laurel Highlands eventually made it back to within three at 73-70.
“I told these guys, I expect them to make a run,” Kovach said. “We were ready for them to make a comeback. We knew that. They’re a good team.”
With all the momentum on the Mustangs’ side, it would have been easy for the Tigers to fold under the pressure, especially after another missed shot. Instead, junior guard Brison Kisan grabbed an offensive rebound and made a put-back to stretch McKeesport’s lead back to six with two minutes left, and the Tigers held on the rest of the way for the victory.
“I’ll always take a win, even if it’s ugly,” Kovach said. “There’s definitely a lot of teaching points in that, but if we hadn’t played so well in the beginning, we wouldn’t have been in a position for them to challenge our lead.
“I thought we showed a lot of heart, because we could have folded when they were coming back — but we didn’t.”
“A lot of people probably came to see their freshman, but they left talking about our freshman.”
— McKeesport coach Kevin Kovach, praising the play of Travarese Rowe