Delta rebounds from loss, layoff, for third

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Sure it was only for third place, but Delta senior Rebecca Cook savored every minute of her last opportunity to play high school basketball Saturday.

Butting heads -- at times, literally -- against sixth-ranked Worth County in the Class 1 third-place game, the 5-foot-6 guard flung herself all over the Hearnes Center floor to help the second-ranked Bobcats to a 54-43 victory.

"I knew it was going to be my last game," said Cook, who scored 13 points and sported a puffy purple bruise under her left eye after a head-on collision with a Worth County player in the first quarter. "I wanted to go all out. Can't hold anything back. I really wanted to win this one."

After its furious rally fell short in a semifinal loss to Chilhowee on Thursday, Delta (27-3) showed no ill effects from the tough defeat or the one-day layoff it had to sustain during the three-day Show-Me Showdown event.

"It's kind of hard to lose the first one, but we all got each other up," Delta senior Rebecca Below said after finishing with team-leading totals of 19 points and eight rebounds. "We had to come out here and win it. Third is better than fourth."

Delta coach Randy White admitted he was concerned about how his team would respond in the third-place game after the defeat Thursday. However, he wasn't surprised by the way his team played Saturday.

"After the emotional game the other night, we wanted to make sure we came out with intensity, and we did that," White said. "That's one of the reasons we're here. Ability is important, but you've got to have the competitive nature. All of our players have that."

Delta showed no quit after falling behind 6-2 to open the game. Despite the deficit, Cook seemed especially determined after butting heads with Worth County's Traci Harding. While Harding went to the bench for treatment, Cook stayed in the game and scored five of Delta's final seven points of the quarter to push the Bobcats to an 11-9 lead.

"Rebecca's very competitive," White said.

Cook's competitiveness and the sharp-shooting of her sophomore sister, Sarah Marie Cook, sparked Delta to a double-digit lead in the second quarter. Sarah Marie, dubbed "Little Sarah" to distinguish herself from teammate Sarah Jo Cook, made consecutive 3-pointers within 40 seconds to start a 10-0 run that stretched the Bobcats' advantage to 23-10 at the 2:43 mark.

"I think that got our momentum going," Rebecca Cook said. "That's when we knew we were in the game."

Delta held a 25-14 lead at halftime and kept the margin in double-digits until late in the fourth quarter. A three-point play by Sarah Jo Cook gave Delta its biggest lead at 42-22 with 2:16 left in the third quarter. Sarah Jo finished with 13 points.

West Platte used its aggressive defense, which forced 27 Delta turnovers, to get as close as 48-40 with 1:08 left. Delta made four of five free throws down the stretch to hold on.

"That team gets after you," White said. "I think they kind of live and die by the press, and they showed that. At times, they gave us a lot of trouble with the press." P

laying without senior standout April Miller, who injured her knee early in its semifinal loss to Brashear, Tiffany Troutwire led Worth County (28-4) with 17 points.