Eden Prairie boys' basketball coach David Flom came into Saturday's Class 4A, Section 6 semifinal against Minnetonka knowing he would be without his most prolific scorer, Grantham Gillard. The transfer from Maranatha averages more than 19 points per game, so Flom needed to figure out a way to find those missing points somewhere among the depleted roster.
The answer came in the form of senior captain Andre Wallace.
Wallace scored a season-high 36 points, earning the Eagles a ticket to the section championship game with a 71-68 victory over the Skippers at Chaska High School.
"The concern now is everybody slides into roles, so other guys need to step up and make plays and that's what we talked about," Flom said. "The reality is that Andre needed to step up double and he did."
Said Wallace: "This whole game I was just saying, give me the ball to try to get to the basket, draw a foul or score and that's what happened. Coaches told me I need to step up and be a leader for the team and get them involved. Basically do anything I can to get the win."
Down 57-50 with 6 minutes, 7 seconds to play, Minnetonka rallied after Seth Coatta and Amar Miller each hit a three-pointer. On the inbounds pass, Eden Prairie's Zach Hovey was called for a technical foul that turned into two points for the Skippers and also gave them back the ball.
But on Eden Prairie's next possession, Wallace drove the lane and scored, giving the Eagles the lead for good.
"[Wallace has] matured more and more every year," Flom said. "Couldn't be any prouder of him."