Notebook: Manual Extravaganza
The Manual Extravaganza is a 10 game slate two days before Christmas at Manual High School. It pits some of the best teams in the state against some good out of state competition. This year the Evansville Bosse and Lawrence North game highlight the action while Ben Davis, Cathedral, Howe, FW North and Warren Central are also strong in state teams. Danville (IL) and Hamilton Heights Christian (TN) highlight the out of state teams.
Game 1: Danville (IL) 89, Indianapolis Northwest 43
Danville controlled this entire game scoring 73 points the final three quarters. They emptied out their bench in the third quarter and a combination of hot shooting and good defense led to the win. Danville made nine 3-pointers in the game and they also had 12 steals. This was a game that was over before it began and you could kind of tell once the teams took the floor.
Top Performers:
Keen Reed | Northwest | 2020 5’1 G – 19 points, 6/7 3FG
Caleb Griffin | Danville (IL) | 2018 6’3 SG – 14 points, 7 rebounds
Adam Forthenberry | Danville (IL) | 2018 6’3 SG – 14 points
Jason Taylor | Northwest | 2018 6’4 PF – 13 points, 5 rebounds
Game 2: Gary West 72, Indianapolis Homeschool 61
Indianapolis Homeschool gave Gary West all they wanted and more. Homeschool was money from behind the arc and they just kept shooting the ball from deep. This wasn’t a problem since they hit 12 in the game. Gary West just had more size so they killed Homeschool on the boards got almost every rebound due to the height difference.
Top Performers:
Teionte Mitchell | Gary West | 2018 6’2 G/F – 18 points, 5 rebounds
Emmanuel Calhoun | Gary West | 2019 5’11 PG – 15 points, 6 rebounds
Myles Johnson | Indy Homeschool | 2019 6’5 SF – 15 points
Noah Shook | Indy Lighthouse | 2020 5’10 SG – 14 points, 4 rebounds
Game 3: Indianapolis Howe 87, Cincinnati Taft 62
Howe used their press to cause havoc like they have been doing all year long and it worked in their favor as Howe brought in seven steals and forced Taft to throw it away multiple times. Howe also was very physical with Taft and you could see that Taft isn’t used to this kind of physicality. A very chippy game all around.
Top Performers:
Tony Hopkins | Howe | 2018 6’5 SF – 26 points, 4 assists
Kycia Washington | Howe | 2019 6’ PG – 23 points, 4 assists
Donta’e Mosley | Taft | 2020 6’5 PF – 17 points, 6 rebounds
Breon Jones | Taft | 2020 5’10 G – 15 points
Game 4: Warren Central 95, Lighthouse CPA 46
Warren Central used their speed and length to easily beat Lighthouse. The result was never in question as they got off to a super quick start and held a huge lead for the entire game. Warren Central’s post and wing players really killed Lighthouse on the glass and in transition. Warren showed that they are one of the best teams in the start with an emphatic win over a lesser team.
Top performers:
Jakobie Robinson | Warren Central | 2019 6’5 PF – 16 points, 6 rebounds, 3 blocks
David Bell | Warren Central | 2019 6’3 SF – 15 points
Antoine Clark | Lighthouse CPA | 2018 6’2 SG– 15 points
Mike Whittle | Lighthouse CPA | 2019 6’ SG – 12 points
Game 5: Tindley 56, Homestead 52
Homestead gave Tindley a run for their money and almost beat the 1A team that has now three wins in a row over 4A teams. Homestead shot the ball pretty decently but Eric Hunter took over in the second half. Tindley was better on defense and were bringing down the boards at key times in the game. Homestead is a young team with some good talent, they just couldn’t hang with Tindley.
Top Performers:
Eric Hunter Jr. | Tindley | 2018 6’3 SG – 19 points
Sam Buck | Homestead | 2019 6’9 SF – 14 points
Onye Ezeakudo | Homestead | 2018 6’ CG – 13 points, 10 rebounds
Sincere McMahon | Tindley | 2020 6’ PG – 13 points, 3 assists
Game 6: Cathedral 65, FW North 56
Coming into the game, we were expecting a close battle and on the scoreboard it was but Cathedral actually dominated this game. Keion Brooks went off in the second half but it wasn’t quite enough as Armaan Franklin had a great game. FW North wasn’t helped by the fact that Austin Boucher didn’t play and you could tell that there was a bit of a depth issue on the side of FW North. Cathedral earned this win as they led by double digits for most of the game.
Top Performers:
Keion Brooks | FW North | 2019 6’7 SF – 30 points
Armaan Franklin | Cathedral | 2019 6’5 SG – 25 points
Jarron Coleman | Cathedral | 2018 6’5 SF – 20 points, 3 assists
Lucas Kroft | FW North | 2019 6’5 SF – 11 points, 6 rebounds
Game 7: North Central 69, Merrillville 52
North Central easilt crusied to the win in this one. They forced Merrillville into tons of turnovers and took care of the ball themselves. Donald Lee continuously threw down huge dunks and brought the crowd to their feet. Merrillville struggled shooting the ball and this just wasn’t a good matchup since North Central can run with the ball really well.
Top Performers:
Jaylon Holmes | Merrillville | 2018 6’6 G/F – 24 points
Donald Lee | North Central | 2018 6’4 SF – 18 points
Ty’Riek Johnson | North Central | 2018 5’11 PG – 14 points
Caleb Pack | North Central | 2018 5’9 PG – 11 points
Game 8: Lawrence North 70, Evansville Bosse 66
The best game on paper did not disappoint. Jared Hankins was on fire in the first half draining four threes to keep it close and then in the second half Kevin Easley started to get going forcing Bosse into a spot where they had to press. Mehki Lairy fouled out when Bosse was down eight and that put the nail in the coffin for Bosse. A very good game between two great teams.
Top Performers:
Mehki Lairy | Evansville Bosse | 2018 5’8 PG – 25 points
Jared Hankins | Lawrence Central | 2019 6’4 SG – 25 points (5/7 3FG), 6 rebounds
Kevin Easley | Lawrence North | 2018 6’7 SF – 18 points, 11 rebounds 2 blocks
Jaylin Chinn | Evansville Bosse | 2018 5’9 PG – 16 points
Game 9: Hamilton Heights Christian (TN) 78, Ben Davis 75
In a game where Hamilton Heights Christian looked like they easily had it under control after being up by 20 in the second half, Ben Davis battled back behind a ton of scoring by Aaron Henry. Henry took over in the second half. He scored 49 points and made most of that at the rim. Hamilton Heights had no answer for him and if he had not missed a few free throws towards the end of the game.
Top Performers:
Aaron Henry | Ben Davis | 2018 6’5 SF – 49 points, 5 rebounds, 4 steals, 3 assists
Tre Edwards | Hamilton Heights Christian | 2019 6’6 SG – 32 points
Jordan Rawls | Hamilton Heights Christian | 2019 6’2 PG – 26 points
Dawond Jones | Ben Davis | 2019 6’7 C – 14 points, 5 rebounds
Game 10: Manual 69, Chicago Marshall 53
Chicago Marshall was just overmatched in this one. Manual cruised to an easy victory as Manual dominated every aspect of the game. Manual forced turnovers almost every trip down the floor and because of this Marshall just couldn’t really score any points. Marshall came out in the second half and started to show signs of life but Manual was just too much to handle in the end due to their height.
Top Performers:
Wilante Hankston | Manual | 2019 6’2 SG – 22 points
Eddi Skipper | Chicago Marshall | 2018 5’9 SG – 15 points
Brian Brooks | Chicago Marshall | 2020 6’2 SG – 14 points
Joshua Pack | Manual | 2018 5’8 PG – 11 points