High School Boys Basketball: Hilltoppers beat Delavan 50-47 in battle for the Tomahawk
Lane Murphy 17 points leads Mount Pulaski

[January 26, 2020]  The Ed Butkovich Gymnasium was the place to be in Mount Pulaski Friday night. The Hilltoppers hosted their Tomahawk Conference foes, the Delavan Panthers, and the crowd was buzzing with excitement.

Grant Davis and Zac Hinds, returned to action after being out due to injuries for a number of weeks, and with a healthy team the Hilltoppers took the court ready to do battle with possession of the Tomahawk trophy on the line.

It was the Panthers striking early and often from beyond the three-point range to open up the game with a 9-2 lead.

Aidan Schneider hit the first three for Mount Pulaski and it was definitely a fast-paced run and gun game to start things off.

Brandon Kretzinger scored his first points of the game off the offensive rebound and the Hilltoppers found themselves catching up, 9-7 the score.

The game would be knotted at 11-11 after a drive to the basket by Lane Murphy was good for Mount Pulaski.

Macarthur Briggs had the hot hand for Delavan in the first quarter and he broke the tie scoring his third bucket of the game. The Panthers would lead 15-12 after a basket by Dawson Erxleben closed out the first quarter scoring.

Mount Pulaski was quick to tie the game in the second quarter as Kretzinger connected again from long range. Erxleben put the Panthers back on top with a long three without hesitation.

The Hilltoppers answered quickly at the other end as Drew Martin fired a pass in the corner to Grant Davis and he scored his first points of 2020.

With the score tied at 18-18 both crowds were cheering loud and wanting more. Zac Hinds delivered for Mount Pulaski with a shot in the lane and the Hilltoppers were back in front 20-19.

Mount Pulaski capitalized on some free throw opportunities in the second quarter to extend the lead to 24-20.

Briggs closed the gap to 24-22 for Delavan and that score stood through the halftime entertainment.

Yes, there was halftime entertainment. Ten young future Hilltoppers took the court to play a game at halftime and although the scoring was low, the moves were impressive. This group of boys practices with the team once a week to work on the fundamentals of the game. A great idea to continue building the program.

During the third quarter, Mount Pulaski ran out to a 31-23 lead and then things took a turn for the Hilltoppers. Over the course of three minutes, the Panthers went on a 13-0 run and took 36-31 lead over Mount Pulaski. The shots were not falling for the Hilltoppers and the Panthers took advantage.

It would take a free throw from Lane Murphy to get Mount Pulaski back on track at the 1:14 mark. Murphy would end the quarter on a happy note for the Hilltoppers as he drained a three and breathed new life back into the crowd.

Delavan still held a 38-35 lead but Mount Pulaski was fired up.

Schneider's three early in the fourth quarter made it a brand new ballgame and heightened the intensity of the night even more.

After Landon Horning came off the bench to drain a three, the Panthers stole the lead back.

But the adrenaline rush from Schneider was evident as he stopped abruptly, put up the ball fake and with just the right amount of hesitation, he drained the field goal.

Delavan still had the lead but not for long.

Hinds found his groove from long range and the timing of his three was perfect. Mount Pulaski had a 43-41 lead in front of the home crowd as the game was dwindling down to the final three minutes.

The Panthers' Erxleben was on fire all night though and as the smallest guy on the court, he didn't miss a beat. He put the Panthers back on top 44-43 with yet another three.

At the two minute mark it would be Drew Martin with a spin move in the lane to put Mount Pulaski back out in front 45-44.

After a Delavan miss and a huge rebound from Hinds, Mount Pulaski was definitely in a good position with less than a minute to play. Delavan was forced to foul time and time again down the stretch. The Hilltoppers made 5-of-6 shots from the free throw line in the final seconds and even though Erxleben banked in a three late in the game, the Panthers came up short 50-47.

The win gave Mount Pulaski possession of the Tomahawk and the players didn't hesitate to grab the trophy for pictures afterwards. It's been a few years since Mount Pulaski had their hands on this treasured artifact.

"We played tough against a tough defensive team that has some great shooters," said Mount Pulaski Coach Ryan Diebert following the win. "I thought we had some solid minutes from our bench players, especially Zac's size. It was a solid, unselfish team effort. Both teams came out a better team after playing a grind-it-out, tough game with multiple lead changes like that one."

The Hilltoppers, who improve to 12-7 overall this season, were led in scoring by Lane Murphy with 17 points.

The Panthers were led in scoring by Dawson Erxleben with 20 points.

Mount Pulaski has possession of the Tomahawk trophy with a 2-1 conference record.

In the JV contest the Hilltoppers defeated Delavan by a final score of 36-23.

Lucas Kuhlman led Mount Pulaski with 12 points.

Mount Pulaski will host Greenview Tuesday night with the JV scheduled to start at 6 p.m. The Varsity will follow at 7:30 p.m.

Mount Pulaski 50

L. Murphy 17
Schneider 9
Hinds 7
Kretzinger 7
Martin 6
G. Davis 4

Delavan 47

Erxleben 20
Briggs 13
DeJesus 6
Horning 3
Lake 3
Jeckel 2

JV scoring

Mount Pulaski 36

L. Kuhlman 12
Hagan 6
Smith 6
Bailey 4
Fricke 4
Aylesworth 2
Tyson 2

Delavan 23

Lake 8
Houston 6
Carl 4
Bell 3
Sundell 2

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Teena Lowery
Sports Reporter/Feature Writer | Lincoln Daily News
217.454.6419 | [e-mail]