By Anthony Gorges
JC/Little Apple Post
Manhattan High School was the site of the rivalry between Junction City and Manhattan on Friday night. Both games featured a very close first half, then a near 20-point victory in each game, as the teams split the doubleheader in the final matchups of this season.
Girls recap - Manhattan 66, Junction City 46
This is the closest this game has been in a long time. Even a 20-point win by the Manhattan Lady Indians does not describe how good of a game this was for the first couple of quarters.
In the first quarter, Manhattan jumped out to a lead, as senior Kat Ball scored the first six points for Manhattan. The Lady Indians led by five after one, at 14-9. Junction City stayed in the game thanks to back-to-back threes by sophomore Isabel Pruitt.
In second-quarter action, Manhattan expanded its lead to 12, leading 24-12 with four minutes to go in the half. Then, back-to-back three-pointers by sophomore Taliyah Campbell cut the deficit to six, with MHS leading 24-18. That was the closest it would be the rest of the half. The Lady Indians ended the first half on a 13-0 run and led 37-18.
In the second half, Manhattan stretched its lead to 25 a couple of times, but the Lady Jays cut it to 17 twice. Manhattan led 53-30 after three quarters and won the game 66-46.
Each team had two players score in double digits. For Manhattan, Kat Ball scored 21 points, and Jorryn Hall added 10. For Junction City, Laniyah Warmack scored 14 points, and Isabel Pruitt added 12.
Manhattan improves to 16-5 on the year, while Junction City falls to 2-18.
Boys recap - Junction City 73, Manhattan 54
Manhattan senior Will Carpenter scored the first basket of the game, and then Junction City's Brody Boeckman answered with his own basket, and the game was off and running in a packed Manhattan High School gym. That early lead was the only lead Manhattan held all night. This game was all about Junction City's Brody Boeckman and Lovell Autry. Boeckman scored 11 points in the first quarter, and JCHS led 19-12 after one.
In the second quarter, Junction City continued its fast start, scoring at will. Boeckman added six more points, and senior Lovell Autry began heating up. The Blue Jays led 29-17 with two minutes to go in the half. Manhattan head coach Benji George called a timeout, and it worked. The Indians ended the quarter on a 10-0 run and trailed by only two, at 29-27.
Third-quarter action featured the teams trading baskets early in the period. Then Autry got going for Junction City, and the Blue Jays extended their lead back to nine, at 40-31. Manhattan responded with a small run and then capped the period off with quite the highlight. Senior Will Carpenter sent a three-quarter-court heave flying and nailed it (the shot was from the opposite free-throw line). Manhattan had the momentum, now down just four, with Junction City leading 48-44.
Despite the incredible shot by Carpenter, it was Junction City that blasted out of the timeout and took control. Junction City started the quarter on a 13-6 run. It was back-to-back three-point plays by junior Khaliel Walker and Autry to give JC the lead at 61-50. On Autry's basket, he officially passed the 1,000-point mark for his four-year career at Junction City High School. From that point forward, Junction City cruised to victory, and the Blue Jays won 73-54.
Two Blue Jay players outscored Manhattan as a team. Brody Boeckman scored a career-high 31 points, and Lovell Autry added 25 points. The two combined for 56 points.
The leading scorers for Manhattan were Will Carpenter with 15 and Sawyer Newton with 11 points.
Junction City improves to 11-9 on the year, while Manhattan falls to 13-7.
Manhattan High travels to Emporia High on Tuesday, while Junction City returns home to host Topeka Hayden.