By Eugenio Torrens
Something Wiregrass Ranch girls basketball player Kelly McCaffrey has worked to achieve for almost four years was finished in only 12 seconds.
That’s how much time elapsed before the senior guard put up her 1,500th career point in the Bulls’ 68-32 victory over Land O’ Lakes on Jan. 25. McCaffrey entered the home contest with 1,499.
Logan Seoane won the tip and got the ball straight to McCaffrey, who took off and nailed a floater that banked off the backboard.
“It’s great. I’ve been waiting for a long time for it. This was my goal this year, and it just feels good to meet it my senior year,” McCaffrey said.
Wiregrass Ranch (20-7) first-year coach John Gant said getting McCaffrey the ball that quickly wasn’t part of the game plan.
“We did not say ‘Hey, let’s let her score first’ in any way,” Gant said.
The only thing designed was stopping the game briefly after McCaffrey got the bucket to acknowledge and celebrate the moment.
As a coach, Gant has had one player score more than 1,000 points, but said having a player reach 1,500 was pretty special.
McCaffrey, who was already the program’s leading scorer, didn’t know she was as close as she was until a couple of weeks ago. She said although the milestone was in sight, she didn’t try to press too much and played her “normal self.”
McCaffrey’s “normal self” puts up 19.1 points per game while dishing out 4.1 assists and pulling down 8.9 rebounds, the most of any player in the Bulls’ district. She has managed career highs in all of those game averages despite having a new coach this season. Gant was particularly proud of how McCaffrey has excelled in the new system.
“It’s come within the flow of what we do, and that’s been the good part about it,” Gant said. “She’s got over 400 points in how we run our offense, so it’s been very rewarding.”
McCaffrey’s teammates have admired her scoring ability, including freshman forward Amanda Melosky.
“She’s very smooth when she drives to the basket,” Melosky said. “I’ve tried to pick up on that and move like she does. I’ve watched how she shoots and how she passes. Pretty much I want to be able to do what she does.”
While McCaffrey was being celebrated for her offensive prowess, against Land O’ Lakes she demonstrated she’s just as capable on the other side of the ball.
In the win over the Gators, McCaffrey had eight steals — she averages 4.4 steals — in a first quarter that witnessed Wiregrass Ranch shut out Land O’ Lakes 25-0. The Gators didn’t get on the scoreboard until 5:18 remaining in the second quarter when Kendra Sheets sank a free throw.
“That’s the best first quarter we’ve ever played this year,” Gant said.
McCaffrey was pulled with 7:54 remaining as the Bulls’ victory was already sealed. She finished with 23 points. She added 30 in Wiregrass Ranch’s regular season finale against Anclote on Jan. 27, a 68-18 win, to give her 1,552 for her career.
“It means a lot. It’s a big accomplishment and I’m glad I got there, but I couldn’t have done it without my teammates and coaches, so I’m just glad I have them,” McCaffrey said.
The Bulls are just as happy to have McCaffrey part of the herd.
“If anybody’s watched our team, you just see everybody feed off her from a psychological perspective and that’s the kind of testament to what kind of psyche she has,” Gant said.
The 1,500-point mark is in McCaffrey’s rearview, but Gant pointed out that up ahead lie more points.
“Every time she scores now, it’s another record, right,” Gant said. “We’ll just watch her grow and grow and grow and keep going.”
Wiregrass Ranch plays in the Class 7A-District 9 tournament semifinals at Steinbrenner against Freedom on Wednesday, Feb. 1 at 6 p.m. A win would clinch a playoff spot for the Bulls.
–Sports Editor Kyle LoJacono contributed to this story
