NORTH MANCHESTER - Columbia City basketball coach Chris Benedict said his team played to win.

Manchester coach Gary Goshert said his team played not to lose.

There is a difference, and that difference was two points Saturday as Columbia City edged the Squires 51-49.

As far as losses go, this was as tough as they come.

The Squires, who led almost the whole game, lost to the Eagles on a buzzer-beating layup by guard Matt Moore.

With five seconds left in the 49-49 game, Benedict called Columbia City's final timeout. To win, the Eagles would first have to go the full length of the court, get a shot off and get that shot to fall. All in five seconds.

Somehow, some way, they did it.

The Eagles inbounded the ball to Moore, who dribbled up the court, through the heart of the Manchester defense and hit the game-winning layup just before time ran off the clock.

"It was great penetration on his part, understanding the time he had," Benedict said. "I'm sure their coach was saying 'don't foul, don't foul.' We attacked aggressively and got exactly what we wanted.

"If they would have stopped his penetration, we would have kicked out to (Gabe) Argerbright or (Dave) Richmond for the shot. Matt took what the defense gave him."

Moore's basket - his second field goal in the game - gave Columbia City just its sixth lead of the evening, albeit the most important one to have. That's why Goshert left this game feeling his team had every chance to put the game away earlier.

"The last play looks bad, but the last play is not what cost us the ball game," he said. "There were umpteen different things that took place, and most of them were us offensively. We weren't assertive. We were playing not to lose."

Still, Goshert admitted Moore should have never been allowed to stroll down the middle of the paint like he did.

"The last play, we didn't contain the basketball, and no one else was willing to help," he said. "For whatever reason. Whether they were thinking foul or thinking their man was going to get the ball. To let somebody dribble the full length of the floor and shoot a layup ... you at least have to make him pass."

One of the "things" that Goshert felt his team did too much of throughout the game was rely on the perimeter shot. The Squires scored 16 of their 49 points in the paint.

"We were 5 of 10 from the free throw line," he said. "That means the basketball is not going inside very much, if you shoot only 10 free throws. We didn't drive enough. We didn't pass it inside enough. Those are the things that alllow teams to get back in games."

The Squires jumped ahead 15-8 after one quarter, taking advantage of eight Eagle turnovers in the first eight minutes. They continued to play well into the second quarter, extending their lead to 26-11 with 3:44 left before halftime.

Columbia City turnovers helped Manchester take the early lead. Manchester turnovers helped the Eagles get back in the game.

The Squires lost the ball six times the second quarter, and the Eagles outscored Manchester 10-0 the last 3:44. Manchester's lead deflated from 26-11 to 26-21 at halftime.

"We had a chance to take care of business," Goshert said. "We were up 26-11. I'm not sure we scored a point the rest of the half. It was because of our turnovers, and I'm talking about turnovers that were silly turnovers."

The Eagles were a different team the second half. After eight turnovers the first quarter, they had eight the rest of the game. After shooting 6 of 19 (32 percent) from the field the first half, they made 14 of 20 (70 percent) in the second half. They made 7 of 9 in the fourth quarter, while Manchester made 3 of 10.

"We kept battling and battling all night," Benedict said. "Eventually, we started coming up with some of the loose balls. Manchester was getting them all early in the game. Late in the game, we started getting them."

Richmond scored 19 for the Eagles. Rex Reimer led Manchester with 14, and Scot Croner added 12.

The Eagles, 5-2, have already run the table on Three Rivers Conference teams who compete in the Columbia City Sectional. Manchester, Tippecanoe Valley and Whitko play in the Columbia City Sectional. The Eagles have beaten them all this season.

"I feel better about this win than some of the ones we had earlier, just because we finished harder," Benedict said. "We played to win the game, not to lose the game. Being down 14 (and coming back) was a great character builder for our team."

Manchester, 4-2, competes in the County Tourney at Southwood on Friday and Saturday. [[In-content Ad]]