Manhattan High girls’ basketball protected its perfect start to Centennial League play Friday night, taking down Hayden 49–36 at home.

“That’s always a good place to start, because you know that you got those wins in your in your pocket, then you can go after more,” head coach Scott Mall said on the 3-0 league start.

The game evolved into a defensive slugfest as it wore on — a style that favored Manhattan (8–2, 3–0), which has been relentless on that end of the floor all season.

Last year’s home meeting between the two programs saw Manhattan upset then-top-ranked Hayden in Class 4A with a narrow 50–47 win. This time, both teams entered the night ranked in their respective classes and unbeaten in league play.

Manhattan set the tone early behind senior Delaney Larson, who led the Indians in the opening half before sophomore Evie Banks took over late. Banks scored a game-high 13 points, all in the fourth quarter, to close the door. Larson carded 12 points and Ansley Becket added 8.

“Evie knows where to go to get buckets, and she did a good job of that,” Mall said. “She’s aggressive. She got some good rebounds for us on the defensive end. But it’s always big when you have somebody that can score like Evie does — that’s always a plus.”

Hayden, which fell to 9–3 overall and 3–1 in league play, was led by Hailey Schmidtlein, who scored all 10 of her points in the second half.

The Centennial League foes came out at a fast pace, with stretches of play bordering on out of control early. Manhattan’s defensive pressure gave it an immediate advantage, limiting Hayden to just six first-quarter points. Four different Indians scored in the frame as Manhattan led 16–6 after one.

The Indians opened the second quarter on a 9–2 run, with their defense continuing to disrupt Hayden’s offense. Larson led Manhattan’s efforts on both ends of the floor as the Indians nearly doubled the Wildcats in turnovers during the period, 11–6.

Manhattan’s offense cooled late in the half, but the defensive effort carried the Indians into the break with a 25–10 lead. Larson led all scorers with nine points at halftime, while Schmidtlein — Hayden’s leading scorer at 18 points per game — was held scoreless through two quarters.

“Schmidtlein is so good, and she really leads them,” Mall said. “Our girls did a really good job on her. Bailey Busch and Ansley Beckett spent most of the time guarding her, and just did a super job of not letting her catch it easily.”

The offensive lull carried into the third quarter, as Manhattan scored just six points in the opening six minutes of the second half. Still, the Indians maintained control and held a nine-point advantage entering the final frame.

Banks, Manhattan’s leading scorer on the season, was held scoreless until the fourth quarter, but she found her rhythm when it mattered most. Her 13-point burst fueled the Indians down the stretch and kept the Wildcats from mounting a late comeback.

Manhattan closed out the win, preserving its unbeaten mark in league play ahead of a break from league foes. Manhattan heads to Blue Valley-Stilwell on Friday, followed by the McPherson Tournament in two weeks.

“We’ve got to be ready at Blue Valley next Friday, who has a really good team,” Mall said. “Then after it’ll be a tough tournament. So hopefully we can keep getting ready, keep improving.”

MANHATTAN 49,

HAYDEN 36

Manhattan (8-2, 3-0) — 16; 9; 10; 14 — 49

Hayden (9-3, 3-1) — 6; 4; 16; 10 — 36

INDIVIDUAL SCORING

Manhattan — Larson 12, Becket 8, Depusoir 6, Ingram 3, Ball 4, Busch 3, Banks 13

Hayden — Walter 3, Schmidtlein 10, Foster 7, Mitchell 4, Huscher 4, Borjon 4, Connell 4