Mount Pulaski Hilltoppers sweep Delavan in Friday night basketball

[January 20, 2018] 

Mount Pulaski hosted Delavan Friday night and a big crowd turned out in support of the Hilltoppers, who improved to 15-5 on the season after defeating the Panthers 58-30.

Delavan controlled the tip-off but that would be the only thing the Panthers controlled all evening. Mount Pulaski was dominate on both ends of the court and made it very clear in the first quarter.

Peyton Taylor opened the scoring with his pretty familiar tip-in, off of a miss. At 6’8 and roaming the middle he does have that advantage and gets a lot of put-backs.

Then it was Gezus Oliver making his signature move - a step back and a double check to make sure he was beyond the arc - then nothing but net to drain a three.

Drew Martin got his first points early in the game as well with a bucket in the paint.

Seth Huff with a steal and a layup was a very familiar sight on this night and he got his first points in the first quarter too. Trevor Hayes rounded out the first quarter scoring as he took it to the hoop through the Delavan defenders and laid it in nicely for two points.

All the starters were in the scoring column in the first quarter and Mount Pulaski was up 13-6 over Delavan.

Huff went coast to coast to start the second quarter off.

The Hilltoppers were off and running and showed no signs of slacking. Mount Pulaski would outscore Delavan 14-4 in the second quarter.

Dustin Murphy entered the game and he knew right away what to do. Murphy breezed through the lane for two points and as halftime approached Mount Pulaski was up 27-10.

The third quarter was pretty much the same story. A layup here and there, a baseline drive tossed in the mix and the occasional point in the purple paint by Taylor.

The crowd continued to clap accordingly. But when Nate Dyer entered the game and hit a three from the corner in front of the student section, the fans really came alive. Dyer, obviously a fan favorite right up there in the Joey Davis ranks, hit the three as the buzzer sounded and Mount Pulaski had a 42-20 lead over Delavan.

The crowd loved it but not quite as much as this next move. No disrespect to Dyer, but less than a minute into the fourth quarter, Huff sent the ball through the air for the most beautiful alley-oop yet this season to Taylor. The dunk that Taylor threw down rattled the rim and made the crowd erupt. NICE!

But Dyer got back in the spotlight with his own back-to-back threes and with 3:08 remaining in the game Mount Pulaski was cruising 54-26.

Mount Pulaski senior Gezus Oliver (14) has to leap to catch a pass Friday night as the Hilltoppers downed Delavan 58-30. Oliver is having a very solid senior year, averaging around 16 ppg. His outstanding defense is not going unnoticed either. 

A few more Hilltopper layups, one a nice underhand scoop to the bucket by Huff, would close out the scoring and Mount Pulaski won this one over Delavan 58-30.

While Peyton Taylor led Mount Pulaski with 14 points and also contributed 9 rebounds it’s important to mention that Seth Huff led Mount Pulaski with 10 rebounds and also poured in 8 points. The two have been friends forever and their play on the court reflects their friendship.

Mount Pulaski is now 15-5 on the season.

Varsity scores by quarter:

Mount Pulaski 13 27 42 58
Delavan 6 10 20 30

Mount Pulaski (58)

Taylor 14
Dyer 9
Martin 9
Huff 8
Oliver 8
Murphy 5
Hayes 5

Delavan (30)

Hodges 7
Vannaken 6
Matthews 6
Erxleben 5
Waggoner 3
Kipfer 3

Mount Pulaski JV team defeated Delavan 50-31

JV scores by quarter:

Mount Pulaski 18 28 40 50
Delavan 4 15 19 31

Mount Pulaski (50)

Murphy 17
Kretzinger 14
J. Davis 6
Hinds 6
Matthews 3
Hagan 2
Lawson 2

Delavan (31)

Zamora 6
Dixon 6
Waggoner 6
DeJesus 4
Dowell 4
Gresham 3
Jackal 2

[Teena Lowery]