Monroe Central boys basketball keeps spirit of late coach Rick Owens alive

Before every Monroe Central boys basketball game, head coach Brian Klein drops to one knee, bows his head and has three conversations. The first conversation is a prayer to God. The second is with his late father, whose obituary he carries in the pocket of his suit jacket for every game. And the third is with Rick Owens, a longtime assistant coach at Monroe Central who just last year stood alongside Klein on the sideline as the Golden Bears won sectional and regional championships. Owens died on March 29, 2025 — just a week after the last Golden Bears' season ended in the first round of semi-state at Lafayette Jefferson High School. The timing of his loss shook the team and left a massive...