Manhattan High girls’ basketball opened Centennial League play Friday night with a 67-55 road win at Topeka High, pulling away late behind a balanced scoring effort and strong second-half execution.
Junior Bailey Busch led the Indians (6-2) with 15 points, 12 coming in the second half, as four reached double figures. Senior Kat Ball finished with 13 points, while sophomore Evie Banks scored all 12 of her points in the first half and Jelena Depusoir carded 10.
Topeka High (3-5) was led by Shy Rayton, who scored 21 points, while Hailey Caryl added 17 to pace the Trojans. The Trojans entered the night riding a three-game win streak after navigating a challenging early-season schedule, and they showed up early, jumping out to an 8-2 lead in the opening minutes.
Manhattan settled in before the end of the first quarter, however, with Banks providing an immediate spark. Banks knocked down multiple shots — including a late 3-pointer — to help the Indians take a 20-18 lead after one.
The pace stayed high in the second quarter as both teams continued to trade baskets. Manhattan took its first sustained lead on another Banks 3-pointer, her third of the first half, as the Indians answered nearly every Topeka High push.
Despite the flurry of scoring, the half featured just three lead changes, with neither team able to create separation. Manhattan carried a 38-37 advantage into halftime behind 12 points from Banks and 10 from Ball.
Scoring tightened after the break as Manhattan began to gain traction defensively in the third quarter. The Indians stretched their lead to as many as nine points behind Depusoir stepping up, but Topeka High closed the period on a late run to keep the game within reach. Manhattan led 53–48 entering the final eight minutes.
Manhattan put the game away early in the fourth quarter with a 5-0 run orchestrated by Busch, who knocked down her first two 3-pointers of the season to push the lead to 64-53, the largest margin of the night to that point.
With shot-clock issues from a junior varsity game earlier in the evening forcing the varsity contest to be played without one, Manhattan controlled tempo down the stretch, bleeding the clock and converting at the free-throw line to close out the win.
The win put Manhattan back in the win column after a loss to Hays earlier in the week. The Indians will continue league play at Junction City on Tuesday, followed by their first home league game of the season against Hayden on Friday.
MANHATTAN 67,
TOPEKA HIGH 55
Manhattan (6-2) — 20; 18; 15; 14 — 67
Topeka High (3-5) — 18; 19; 11; 7 — 55
INDIVIDUAL SCORING
Manhattan — Busch 15, Ball 13, Banks 12, Depusoir 10, Larson 6, Becket 6, Ingram 3, Jorryn Hall 2
Topeka High — Rayton 21, Caryl 17, Marshall 7, Gotru 6, Conley 2