MANHATTAN — This was one that maybe got away from the Great Bend High School boys’ basketball team.
Taking on the host Manhattan Indians on Saturday afternoon, the Panthers appeared to match up well with the undersized Indians.
But not taking care of the ball, and not being aware where the other team’s best shooter was in critical situations, merely took the bite out of the Panthers.
“We’ve got to do a better job of defending, making sure we close out the quarters right,” GBHS head coach Chris Battin said. “They came out and trapped us. They really pressured us, and we basically handed them the basketball.
“At that point, I just felt like they wanted it more. They did some things that we couldn’t handle, and we turned it over.”
Shooting guard Jacob Holloway shot holes in Great Bend’s defense, draining four 3-pointers and finished with a game-high 16 points, leading the Indians to a 49-32 victory.
It was the impeccable timing in which Holloway stepped up from beyond the arc that catapulted the Indians, who improved to 3-1 on the season. The long-range bomber hit a 3 at the end of the first quarter to give MHS a 15-9 lead, and he also swished another trey with 1.2 seconds left before halftime to make it 23-16.
“He got loose at the end of the first quarter and he got loose again at the end of the second quarter and hit two really big ones,” Battin said of Holloway. “One followed a turnover, and the other one followed a shot with about 10 seconds left (before halftime).
“They raced down and hit two big 3s and all of sudden, they’re off on a little run.”
Playing from behind didn’t bode well for Great Bend, which fell to 1-4 on the season.
But even though the Indians had the momentum, the Panthers kept hanging around, even though they committed 19 turnovers for the game, cutting the margin to 31-24 with five minutes left after Brock Ibarra and Gabe Joiner hit back-to-back 3s and Ethan Henderson scored in the paint.
The Tribe, though, pulled away, leaving GBHS to go back to the drawing board after its final game before the Christmas break.
“We’ve got to get better,” Battin said. “Finally, we get some practice time. We’ll go every day (until the holiday break). We’ve got to get better.
“It starts in practice and it starts in the film room, so we’ve got to fix the things that are killing us right now and hopefully, get those things shored up and get ready for the WAC schedule and the El Dorado tournament.”

HIGH SCHOOL BASKETBALL
Non-Conference

BOYS

At Manhattan High
MHS Gymnasium

Friday

Manhattan 49, Great Bend 32
GREAT BEND (1-4)
     Matt Marshall 1 2-2 4, Chad Touslee 3 1-2 7, Brock Ibarra 4 1-2 11, Bryce Beck 0 0-0 0, Gabe Joiner 1 0-0 3, Ethan Henderson 2 0-0 4, Wyatt Bayless 0 0-0 0, Josh Lutz 1 0-0 2, Nick Warren 0 0-0 0, Jack Westhoff 0 0-0 0, Jayce Brack 0 0-0 0. Totals 12 5-8 32.
MANHATTAN (3-1)
     Key’ Arri Shorter 1 1-2 3, Blake Saville 0 0-0 0, Bret Fehr 0 0-0 0, Garrett Henry 2 0-0 4, Jonathon Taylor 1 3-4 6, Darian Taylor 1 0-0 2, Alex Stitt 1 0-0 2, Jacob Holloway 6 0-0 16, Chris Hudgins 4 1-2 9, Winston Dimel 3 1-1 7, Pierson McAtee 0 0-0 0, Tyler Daveline 0 0-0 0. Totals 19 6-11 49.
Great Bend     9    7    10     6   —  32
Manhattan    15    8    12    14  —  49
     Three-point goals — Manhattan 5 (Holloway 4, Taylor); Great Bend 3 (Ibarra 2, Joiner). Total fouls — Great Bend 15, Manhattan 13. Fouled out — None.