In a battle of the conference unbeatens, the Wisconsin Dells Chiefs hosted the Mauston Golden Eagles boys basketball team Friday night in South Central Conference action. Both teams entered with perfect 3-0 conference records, with sole possession of first place in the conference on the line. There was a lot of build-up to the game, and on Hall of Fame night at Wisconsin Dells High School, the game was delayed 45-minutes as the Chiefs inducted two new members before the game. Long-time play-by-play announcer for Wisconsin Dells, Bruce “Boomer” Golla, was recognized for being the “Voice of the Chiefs” for 40 years. Andy Shumway, a graduate of the Class of 1977, was also recognized as a three sport, nine time letter winner, and state track and field champion for the Chiefs.

In front of a packed gymnasium, the two teams put on quite a performance in the first-half as Mauston kept it close. It was a back-and-forth battle in the first quarter with the Chiefs leading 12-11 at the end of it. The Dells would hold onto a 24-20 halftime lead, but Mauston certainly looked like they had a good gameplan to stay within striking range.

The second-half was another story as the Chiefs came out on fire to take a 46-31 lead at the end of the third quarter. Junior MJ Delmore hit three 3-pointers in the quarter to lead the Dells to their big lead. The Golden Eagles would not be able to come back as Delmore dominated the court with 19 second-half points.

Delmore led all scorers with a total of 27-points, and junior Shane Wimann played a good supporting role with 21-points for the Chiefs. Junior Colyn Buss added 5-points off the bench, with senior Bryce Buesing and junior Mike Dickman both adding one 3-pointer a piece, senior Trevor Hirst finished with 2-points, and Logan Georgeson had one free-throw off the bench. The Chiefs shot just 47% from the line making 8 of 17, but also made eight 3-pointers on the night.

The Golden Eagles were once again led by junior Joel Heesch who finished with 17-points. Senior Jack Orton added 10-points for Mauston, while senior Taylor Ingraham contributed 7-points, junior Ross Thompson had 5-points, senior Dale Osthoff added a 3-pointer off the bench, and junior Skylar Reicks added 2-points off the bench. Mauston shot 61% from the line making 8 of 13.

Mauston wraps-up the first-half of their season with a 7-4 overall record and a 3-1 conference record. The Golden Eagles will complete the first-half of their conference schedule Tuesday night when they play host to the Nekoosa Papermakers. The Chiefs improve to 9-1 overall and a perfect 4-0 in the SCC. The Dells will finish the first-half of their conference schedule Tuesday night at Adams-Friendship.