Coach Gallagher Reaches Milestone With 400th Career Victory
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Blue Devils Win District Championship -
Blue Devils Win District Championship -
Top left: Brady Reimer scores on a fast break layup. Top right: Bode Gallagher hauls in a rebound. Bottom: Gaige Keister drives around an OCA defender. Bob Henline | Cordell Beacon
The Cordell Blue Devils went on a tear during the past weekend, beating Walters and the Oklahoma Christian Academy to claim the district championship and a spot in the regional tournament.
Cordell started district play in the third seed position, drawing the Walters Blue Devils in Friday night’s elimination game. The game was all that could be expected from playoff basketball, as the two teams of Blue Devils battled back and forth right from the start.
The teams battled to a 17-17 tie at the end of the first quarter, with each team making a few small runs that were quickly matched by the other. After a very similar second quarter, Cordell’s Blue Devils had eked out a 31-30 lead. By the end of the third quarter, Cordell had managed to extend that lead to four points, but it wouldn’t hold. The Walters boys fought their way back into the game and managed to tie up the score as regulation time expired.
The overtime period was, like much of the game, a defensive battle for both teams. Cordell’s boys managed to seize and maintain the lead, though, and came off the court with a two-point win, 64-62, and kept their season alive.
“It was a great game,” said head coach Brandon Gallagher. “Like a bunch of them we’ve played this year, really back and forth. Both teams hit big shots, playoff basketball for sure.”
Gaige Keister led Cordell in scoring, with 24 points on the night. Brady Reimer added 22, including six from three-point range. Carsen Nickel and Bode Gallagher each added seven to the winning effort.
On another statistical note, the win was head coach Brandon Gallagher’s 400th as a head coach, although Gallagher downplayed the milestone accomplishment.
“It was nice to get to the 400 milestone,” he said. “It means I’m getting old. I’ve been very fortunate over the years to coach great kids and players, have supportive parents and administration, and a great wife who has always made every player part of our family. It was a cool weekend, but the main thing is I’m glad we are moving on to the next week!”
Gallagher’s 401st win came rapidly on the heels of 400, as the Blue Devils took on the Eagles of Oklahoma Christian Academy for the district title.
The previous evening’s game was virtually a template for this game, with the two teams battling back and forth all night long, with both fighting hard but unable to stretch the gap and seal the deal before the final buzzer ended it. After four quarters of hard-fought basketball, Cordell came out on top, 57-55.
“This was the best game we played all year,” Gallagher said. “I thought we defended well and handled their pressure most of the time. It was an exciting weekend of intense playoff basketball.”
Brady Reimer led the Cordell offense Saturday night, pouring in 22 points. Gaige Keister followed with 21, while Bode Gallagher contributed eight, along with seven rebounds, six assists, and three deflections.
The Blue Devils’ win puts them in the top bracket for regional play this week. They will square off against Caddo Thursday night, again in Walters. Tip-off is scheduled for 8:00 p.m. A win pits them against the winner of Minco and Snyder, and guarantees them a spot in the area tournament. That game would be at 8:00 p.m. Saturday in Minco. A loss against Caddo will put them in the consolation bracket and force an elimination game against the winner of Stratford and Carnegie, which would be in Minco at 8:00 p.m. on Friday.