Delta pulls out win over Monroe Central

MUNCIE -- After leading Delta in scoring during the first half, Bryce Dishman didn't score during the third quarter Wednesday against Monroe Central.

But his two baskets in the fourth quarter came in handy for the Eagles, who beat the Golden Bears 64-59 at home.

Dishman scored a basket with 2:23 remaining to put his team ahead again after a brief one-point lead for Monroe Central. He later had a steal and layup to put his team ahead by five points with 33.5 seconds remaining, sealing the win for the Eagles.

Delta held the lead for most of the game, though never by a huge margin. The Eagles led 51-45 at the end of the third quarter before Monroe Central came charging back, led by two 3-pointers by Derek Taylor. A Troy Starr running jumper with 2:55 remaining put the Golden Bears ahead by one point before Delta finished the game on a 6-0 run to take the win.

With his team behind 62-59 with 1:06 remaining after a Klay Fullenkamp basket, Monroe Central coach Jeremy Duncan called a timeout hoping to set up a scoring play. Instead, the ensuing possession turned into Dishman's steal and layup.

"We just didn't execute well, for whatever reason, lost our heads a little bit," Duncan said. "And we're young, we start three sophomores, those guys are pretty inexperienced. They haven't played in that big-game atmosphere in tight games yet."

The Golden Bears' Chase Bly led all scorers with 20 points. He scored 16 of those points in the first half, before scoring the rest in the third quarter. Taylor and Caleb Engle also cracked double figures for the Golden Bears, with Taylor scoring 13 and Engle scoring 12 points.

"They did a nice job of tightening up on him defensively, but Chase is a really solid player, he works hard on his shot," Duncan said. "But we did have some guys who stepped up and played really, really well."

Delta coach Stan Daugherty said his team struggled playing a game on a day that didn't follow the usual game day routine. Delta finished exams on Tuesday and didn't have school on Wednesday. The Eagles turned the ball over 14 times.

"I knew we weren't sharp mentally just because of that," Daugherty said. "The fumbles that we had, and then we had a lot of loose balls under the basket that they got and we didn't. Usually, those two indicators are mentally you're not quite as sharp as what you hope to be."

Dishman tied for the Eagles' scoring lead for the game, scoring 15 points. Ethan Grove also scored 15 for the Eagles. Both players came off the bench for the Eagles and they were the only Delta players to score in double digits.

Delta (4-3) plays next on Dec. 30 at Shenandoah. Monroe Central (3-3) plays Dec. 30 at home against Class 2A No. 9 Wapahani.

Contact prep sports reporter Sam Wilson at 213-5807.