Squires Down Oak Hill 59-50

NORTH MANCHESTER -ÊGoing into Tuesday's game against Oak Hill, Manchester had won 20 straight conference games. The Squires' last conference loss came to the Eagles in 1997.

With both teams sporting 2-0 Three Rivers Conference records, the game was crucial for early league standings. The Squires extended their conference winning streak to 21 and took sole possession of first place in the TRC when they defeated Oak Hill 59-50 in North Manchester.

After Kedric Miller netted the first basket of the night to give Manchester a 2-0 lead, Oak Hill (5-2) went on a 6-0 run to take the lead. However, Manchester slowly chipped away at the Oak Hill lead, and by the end of the first quarter, the Squires held a 12-8 lead.

Klay Bechtold opened the second quarter with a three-pointer that increased Manchester's lead to seven, 15-8.

Oak Hill then scored eight unanswered points to take a 16-15 lead, but Manchester fired up near the end of the first half. With 3:20 left in the quarter, Manchester mounted an 11-4 run and held a 26-20 lead at the half.

"The guys came out and played with enthusiasm and togetherness," said Manchester coach Gary Goshert. "They played pretty smart in most situations tonight."

The Eagles made another comeback in the third quarter, and by the end of the third stanza, the Squires found themselves behind, 39-37.

However, Oak Hill's lead did not last long as Anthony Frieden netted the first basket of the quarter to tie the score at 39. Then David Bazzoni hit a free throw and a two-pointer to put the Squires ahead 42-39.

Oak Hill managed to tie the score at 45-45 with 3:07 left in regulation, but Manchester did not allow the Eagles to take the lead. The Squires ended the night with a 59-50 victory and kept their conference record perfect.

"I think we did a pretty good job tonight," said Goshert. "I was most concerned with whether we would come out here and play basketball like we know we can. The past couple games, we have gotten caught up in the head stuff. We needed to get back to playing Squire basketball, and we did that tonight."

Four Squires finished the night in double figures. Chris Lochner and Anthony Frieden led the Squires with 12 points each, while David Bazzoni and Lee Shafer added 11 and 10 points respectively. Shafer led Manchester with eight rebounds.

"We are trying to epitomize team concept," said Goshert. "Tonight we got offensive support from five or six players, and our players who scored off the bench are a tremendous plus. We've gotta continue to work on that the rest of the season."

Manchester is now 3-0 in the conference and 4-2 overall. The Squires face off against Northfield in the Wabash County Tourney Tuesday.