BY MACK McCLURE
mmcclure@gbtribune.com

MANHATTAN — What a difference just 24 hours can make.
No one knows that better than the Great Bend High School Panthers. One night removed from losing to Liberal at home in a fourth-quarter fallout by GBHS, the Class 5A Panthers rose up and knocked off 6A Manhattan 40-39 in overtime on Saturday night.
In the final 1:32 of overtime, GBHS guard Will Gray hit a pair of twisting layups — sandwiching a running sky hook by guard Matt Marshall — and the Panthers exacted revenge from a 47-28 loss to Manhattan back in December.
“Our kids learned from (Friday night), where (Liberal) took the lead and we didn’t battle back,” Great Bend head coach Chris Battin said of his 8-7 team. “Tonight, they took the lead and we took it right back at them.
“I think that was a difference in our maturation and growing process, and it’s good to see.”
It was the best that Great Bend had attacked the basket through its first 15 games, according to Battin.
“There were a lot of kids that stepped up tonight and I was proud of our effort,” Battin said. “Will does a good job of attacking the basket. Will attacked it and then kicked out and someone kicked it out to Matt and he attacked … good things happen when you attack the basket and I was really proud of our team’s effort.”
In a 32-all game during regulation after the Indians’ Connor Brooks hit a driving layup, MHS assistant James Dunnigan was whistled for a technical foul at the 1:56 mark for barking at the one of the three referees.
Jace Bowman of GBHS converted both technical foul shots for a 34-32 lead, although the Panthers didn’t convert after the inbounds play.
Manhattan’s Ryan Wilkinson made the first of two free throws with 12.9 seconds left to close the gap to 34-33.
After a scramble for a loose ball on Wilkinson’s miss, Greg Hildebrand of the Panthers was whistled for his fifth foul, putting the Tribe’s Tyler Francis at the line. He tied the game at 34, which sent it into overtime after Burton blocked a shot near the buzzer.
MHS led 37-34 in OT before the Panthers’ driving layups. In the final seconds and trailing by one, Manhattan inexplicably put a 3-pointer and Tyler Francis misfired.

HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
At Manhattan
Non-conference

BOYS
Saturday
Great Bend 40, Manhattan 39, OT
GREAT BEND
     Matt Marshall 2 0-0 4, Jace Bowman 2 0-2 6, Greg Hildebrand 3 4-4 10, Cameron Casey 3 0-0 9, Jeff Pike 0 0-0 0, Will Gray 3 2-3 8, Dakota Ellis 1 0-0 3, Roderick Frise 0 0-2 0, Wyatt Bayless 0 0-0 0. Totals 14 8-11 40.
MANHATTAN
      Connor Brooks 4 3-5 12, Trey Francis 1 0-0 2, Deante Burton 2 1-2 5, Tyler Francis 4 2-3 11, Ryan Wilkinson 1 3-4 5, Brandon Payne 0 2-2 2. Will Kern 0 0-1 0, Trey Connet 1 0-0 2. Totals 13 11-17 39.
Great Bend    3    12    11     8    6    —    40
Manhattan    6     7     8    13    5    —    39
   Three-point goals —Great Bend 4 (Casey 3, Ellis); Manhattan 2 (Brooks, Burton).