Boys basketball traveled to Hayden on Friday, where they fell 48-50 in a hard-fought, back-and-forth game, dropping to 1-2.

 The Indians controlled most of the game, being up 14 points at halftime. MHS was hitting shots in the paint and outside the arc, making it hard for Hayden to stop them on the offensive side of the ball. But a second half full of turnovers and fouls seemed to doom the Indians.

“We were locking up the halfcourt defense a lot in the first half, along with moving the ball on offense, and our defense helped form our offense,” junior Collins Elumogo said.

However, Manhattan’s defense was very strong for a majority of their game. The Indians forced 14 turnovers in the first half alone, a large reason for the success early in the game, but defense also doomed the Indians late in the game. Hayden opened the fourth quarter on a 7-2 run, getting themselves back into the ballgame. 

“Lack of confidence offensively [was our biggest struggle in the second half].” Elumogo said. “We didn’t pass as much and we didn’t play as good half court defense like we did in the first half.”

Manhattan had two players in double digits. Junior Jack Wilson and senior Cade Perkins had 11 each. Seniors Tate Brown and Trey Holloway had eight, junior Dre Delort had six and junior Keenan Schartz had two. 

Despite the loss, Manhattan switches their focus to an opponent they know all too well, taking on Junction City Tuesday night. Traveling to a rival school, the team looks to get back to .500 win. 

“We expect them to press and be aggressive on defense,” Elumogo said. “Looking to get a couple of steals early probably. So we’re going to have to work on press offense and stuff like that and being a regular game.”