MUNCIE, Ind. — It was everything you want in a championship game between two county rivals.
The stands were full, one side blue and gold and the other red. Fans going wild every time the officials made a call against their teams. A buzzer beater, an intentional foul, a lane violation on a free throw – this game had it all.
In the end, Wapahani's composure won out. The Raiders withstood a late Delta push and hit some big free throws on their way to a 53-50 victory in the Delaware County tournament championship. The win marked Wapahani's first county title since 2014 and ended Delta's bid for a 3-peat.
"For us to come on this court and show what I thought was real class, I'm really proud of our team to hang in there," Raiders coach Matt Luce said. "Delta never quit until the final buzzer, and for our guys to get that final rebound it meant a lot to us.
"That was our sixth county title in 50 years. So obviously it's very difficult to win. I think that's the beauty of the history of the Delaware County tournament."
Senior Peyton West discusses the atmosphere and what it meant to beat Delta for the county championship. Jake Fox / The Star Press
The two best teams in the county showed fans why in front of a postseason-like atmosphere, matching each other punch for punch from the tip.
Delta's Zach Garner hits a 22-footer to put the Eagles up 22-19 at the half? No problem, Wapahani said, as it outscored Delta 19-7 in the third quarter. The Eagles came back and missed a few chances to tie or take the lead before senior Peyton West iced it away at the free-throw line.
"Two seniors really showed a lot of toughness and heart. The way West handled the ball and the way Chandler Wise rebounded down the stretch I thought were keys," Luce said. "Delta just kept coming at us and coming at us."
Josh Bryan, specifically. He was hitting stepback 3-pointers, driving and pulling up from midrange. Bryan finished with 28 and was the main reason why Delta stayed in the game.
"He was who he is," Delta coach Mark Detweiler said. "A lot of it is by committee. But I told our guys I felt like we had a couple guys that normally look at the basket that didn't look at the basket when they needed to. When you looked at Wapahani's guys, their No. 2 and No. 3 looked at the basket more. ... That's important."
Drew Luce led the Raiders with 14 points, followed by West and Tre Spence with 13 apiece.
The county tournament served as a good measuring stick for both of these coaches.
Detweiler said his team needs to be tougher in getting to loose balls and rebounding. Pursuing the ball and transition defense will be an emphasis going forward.
For Luce, he learned his team is tough.
"What I mean by tough is they're willing to not give up," he said. "We had some tough plays down the stretch, some things we didn't feel went our way. They never flinched."
Jake Fox is a high school sports writer at The Star Press. Contact him at (765) 213-5848, jfox@muncie.gannett.com or @FoxJake_.