By JUSTIN BURKHARDT
TopSports.news
With both teams needing a win and each ranked seventh in their respective classes by the Kansas Basketball Coaches Association, Hayden hosted Manhattan Tuesday in a huge Centennial League matchup.
Sophomore Hailey Schmidtlein led the way with 20 points in Hayden's 66-61 win over Manhattan Tuesday night. [File photo/TSN]
In a game that went down to the wire Wildcats were able to outlast the Indians for a 66-61 win.
Hayden jumped out to a fast start behind sophomore Sophia Wichman, who has earned a start in the last two games due to illness and has stepped up in a big way.
“It's definitely boosted my confidence a whole lot because just playing with Hailey (Schmidtlein) and Blakely (Walter) together, we work so well together,'' Wichman said. "I feel like when us three are in the game together, we just know each other really well, and it builds my confidence because I know I have them to help me.”
Wichman scored the first five points of the game before Manhattan senior Delaney Larson found the basket.
Walter then knocked down a 3-pointer to give Hayden an early 8-2 lead. Manhattan struggled offensively in the first quarter as the Wildcats surged ahead 24-12 by the end of the period.
“We played last week and kind of just played halfcourt basketball, and we really felt like this team's better when we push the tempo,” Hayden coach Carvel Reynoldson said. “So we really tried to push the tempo and create space early in possessions, and we did that.
"(Lauren) Borjon hitting some big threes helped us spread them out even more.”
Wichman opened the second quarter with another basket, but Manhattan began to chip away at the lead.
Schmidtlein attacked the rim and got to the free throw line, converting four straight as Hayden built a 33-18 advantage. The Indians responded with a 9-0 run to cut the deficit to 33-27.
Schmidtlein answered with two more free throws, and after the teams traded baskets down the stretch, Hayden carried a 42-35 lead into halftime.
Manhattan came out of the locker room energized, scoring two quick baskets to trim the lead to 42-39.
Hayden struggled offensively in the third quarter as the Indians continued to close the gap. With Hayden leading 46-45 and 3:18 remaining in the third, seniors Kat Ball and Delaney Larson hit back-to-back 3-pointers to give Manhattan its first lead of the game at 51-46.
The surge forced Reynoldson to call a timeout.
“I told them great teams aren't just going to sit back -- they punch back hard, and now we’ve got to counter with everything we have,” Reynoldson said.
“He just said we need to stick together, that we're going to win this game, but we have to get the rebounds because they got so many offensive and defensive rebounds,'' Wichman said.
"We just needed to box out, and whoever was going to fight the hardest was going to win this game. We were all just like, ‘We got this -- we need to fight hard.’ We were encouraging each other.”
Manhattan carried the lead into the fourth quarter, but Hayden refused to back down.
The Indians went ice-cold from the field while the Wildcats opened the final period on a 13-0 run.
Manhattan didn’t score until the 1:55 mark of the fourth quarter.
“It just says a lot,” Wichman said. “It shows that our coach has so much faith in us that we can apply ourselves. I think us working together and knowing we can win as a team -- and encouraging each other -- made the difference.”
Reynoldson emphasized his team’s defensive effort.
“It's everything,'' he said. "We try to pride ourselves on the defensive end and being the team that gets on the floor and out-hustles teams. I didn’t think we really had that last Tuesday.
"We're definitely a better team when we race to the ball and race up court, and we're pretty unselfish.”
A late Manhattan basket cut the deficit to 61-56, but Hayden closed the game out to secure the 66-61 win.
The Wildcats were led by sophomore Schmidtlein with 20 points.
Manhattan was paced by Ball, who led all scorers with 21 points.
HAYDEN 66, MANHATTAN 61
Manhattan 12 23 18 8 -- 61
Hayden 24 18 6 18 -- 66
Manhattan (15-5, 5-2) -- Ball 8-15 3-3 21, Banks 5-14 3-6 16, Larson 3-12 2-2 10, Ingram 1-4 0-0 2, Depusoir 0-5 1-2 1, Busch 1-6 4-5 6, Hall 2-3 1-2 5, Beckett 0-3 0-2 0. Totals 20-62 15-23 61.
Hayden (15-5, 6-2) -- Schmidtlein 4-8 11-11 20, Wichman 5-8 1-1 13, Walter 4-9 1-4 10, Watts 1-2 0-2 2, Huscher 0-5 0-0 0, Boron 3-7 2-4 11, Mitchell 2-7 2-2 7, Connell 2-5 0-0 4. Totals: 21-51 17-21 66.
3-point goals -- Manhattan 5 (Banks 3, Ball, Larson), Hayden 7 (Borjon 3, Wichman 2, Walter, Schmidtlein). Total fouls -- Manhattan 23, Hayden 17. Fouled out -- Larson, Ball, Busch.
