By John Raffel
Averi Gamble is focusing on the final weeks of what’s been a fabulous high school basketball career at Sacred Heart Academy.
The 6-foot-2-inch senior forward-center is in her fourth varsity season.
In the 2014 Class D title game, a 56-53 Sacred Heart victory, Gamble wowed the spectators at the Breslin Center at Michigan State University with 10-of-12 shooting from the floor and 5-of-6 from the free-throw line for 25 points, plus 11 rebounds.
This season, “we are a very young team,” Gamble said. “We get nervous very easily, I feel like. We’re undefeated right now, so it’s going well.”
Gamble is averaging around 18 points and 7 rebounds a game, a little higher than in previous years. “I’m with a very hard-working team, and I feel that I’m playing with the role as a senior and other people are stepping up as well,” she said. “We have a good freshman [Scout Nelson], who is helping out a lot too.”
Gamble’s role has changed slightly this season, including shooting more from the outside.
Against archrival Beal City, Gamble scored 40 points, a career high and a school record. “It was mostly a lot of putbacks, because they didn’t have a lot of height on that team,” Gamble said.
She has also passed the 1,000-point mark.
As a team, “I think we have all the potential in the world to make it [far],” Gamble said. “We just have to put it all together. The younger players are not totally confident yet. I feel once we get our confidence up, we can be a formidable team.”
Carson City-Crystal is Sacred Heart’s biggest rival in the MSAC. The two schools have upcoming rematch, which could be tough for the Irish, along with a battle against Morley Stanwood.
“Our coach says everyone will give us their best game,” Gamble said. “They want to beat Sacred Heart.”
Gamble also plays volleyball, but basketball has been her best sport.
Her future plans for are uncertain. She currently doesn’t have definitive college basketball plans. Gamble has received some interest but no offers.
“I’m thinking more of playing coed basketball in college, because it’s such a huge commitment to play college basketball,” she said. “I’m not sure I’m ready to commit to that yet.”