Squires Too Much For Rival WarriorsNORTH MANCHESTER – The Manchester Squires opened the new year in impressive fashion Friday night.
The host Squires scored early and often, as they led 26-0 after one quarter of play and cruised to an 81-40 Three Rivers Conference win over the North Miami Warriors.
Five Squires ended their nights in double-digits. Senior forward Mason Hamby led the way with 15 points on 5-of-9 shooting. Juniors Brayden Casper and Konrad Borgmann finished with 12 points each, and senior Koehl Fluke and junior Kamdyn Lester chipped in with 11 points each.
Manchester (4-6 overall, 1-1 TRC) made its statement early, capitalizing on shots that wouldn’t fall for the Warriors (2-7 overall, 0-4 TRC).
After the dominating first quarter, the Squires led 47-14 at halftime and 64-27 heading into the final frame.
Despite the margin of victory, Manchester coach Mark Underwood wanted to make it clear that North Miami can still transform into a totally different team down the road for sectionals.
“(Coach Cliff) Hawkins is a legend. They had an off-night, and since we are in the same sectional as them, I’ll bet that if we face each other again, the result won’t be anything like tonight,” said Underwood.
The Warriors got their first basket over a minute into the second quarter, but the margin was insurmountable by then. With the lead at-hand, it gave Underwood an opportunity for his bench players to get plenty of varsity minutes.
“That is something that is very important for our team,” said Underwood. “We want to give some of our younger guys the experience playing at this level.”
The Squires will stay home for their next TRC game, as they will host Maconaquah Tuesday night. North Miami will try to get back on the right track next week as they will visit Lakeland Christian.
