MANNFORD — Mannford went 1–1 last week, and somehow managed to show both ends of its personality in the process — the lock-you-down, grind-you-out Pirates on Tuesday, and the welcome-to-the-rock-fight version on Friday.
The week started the right way with the Pirates getting a little sweet revenge on the Trojans.
On Tuesday, Feb. 3, Mannford went on the road to Kiefer and walked out with a 54–44 win that didn’t look all that impressive at halftime — I mean, it was just a one-point lead. But when the rates Pirates came out of the locker room in the third, they flat-out took the game away.
“We led by one at halftime but outscored Kiefer 16–4 in the third quarter, and that ultimately decided the game,” head coach Alex Moore said.
That third quarter wasn’t basketball so much as a defensive statement, and it turned a tight game into a controlled one.
At the front of it all was Logan Bynum, who poured in 22 points — a great night on any floor, but an especially big one for a Mannford team that prefers the weather on low-scoring planets.
“Logan led us in scoring again with 22,” Moore said. “He has really come on the last few games. We tend to play in low-scoring games, so when he has high-scoring games, it is a big boost to us.”
Cooper Ausbern followed with 11 points, his highest scoring output of the season.
“We do not ask Cooper to score a bunch based on other personnel that we have,” Moore said, “but he is more than capable, and he showed that tonight.”
Max Moore chipped in 8 points, JJ Hindsman added 7, and Landon Owens finished with 6 as Mannford got scoring from everywhere it needed it.
The rest of the box score read like a coach’s dream.
Bynum and Ausbern each grabbed 8 rebounds.
Hindsman dished out 5 assists and took 3 charges — the kind of plays that don’t show up on highlight reels but win games.
Owens was everywhere defensively with 7 steals, while Moore added 4 steals and 2 blocks.
“This was a great team win for us,” Moore said. “We had solid contributions all around.”
Translation: everybody did their job, and it showed.
Vs Perkins Defense showed up — scoring stayed in bed
Friday night brought a different test and a different result.
Mannford hosted No. 12 Perkins on Feb. 6, and the Pirates found out just how thin the margin can be in games where every basket feels like work. No. 13 Perkins escaped with a 40–26 win, but not without a fight.
“We knew points would be at a premium tonight,” Moore said.
He wasn’t kidding. For the second time this season, Mannford held Perkins to its lowest scoring output of the year. Unfortunately, Perkins returned the favor.
Ausbern led Mannford with 12 points and 6 rebounds.
Bynum, Hindsman and Owens each scored 4, while Moore added 2. But that was it.
On the glass, it was all hands on deck. Bynum, Moore, Hindsman, and Owens each finished with 5 rebounds. Moore also added 4 assists and 2 blocks, and Owens led the team with 3 steals.
Mannford actually led in the fourth quarter before Perkins finally found some offensive room.
“We had a small lead going into the fourth,” Moore said, “but Perkins had a scoring outburst in the fourth, and that was the difference.”
Moore didn’t sugarcoat the opponent, either.
“Based on who they have beaten, Perkins is probably under-ranked,” he said. “They are a good team, and we gave it our best shot, but at the end of the day, we just did not make enough shots.”
That’s the reality of low-scoring games — defense can keep you alive, but shots still have to fall. This time, they fell for Perkins.
What’s next.
After the split, Mannford sits at 9–9 overall and 6–5 in conference, right where every February team wants to be: still swinging.
The Pirates won’t be home much this week. They head to Sperry on Tuesday, Feb. 10, to Bristow on Thursday, Feb. 12, and to Cleveland on Friday, Feb. 13.
No promises of pretty basketball, but Sperry will be a nice warmup going into two hard-core rivalry games where anything can happen.