Men's Basketball Beats Manchester (Ind.)

NORTH MANCHESTER, IND.  --  The Defiance College men's basketball team trailed by three points at the half, but outscored Manchester (Ind.) University, 50-42, in the second half to beat the Spartans, 86-81, in a Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference game in North Manchester, Ind.  

The Yellow Jackets shot 50.0 percent (15-of-30) in the second period and got to the free-throw line 15 times, converting 14 of the attempts.  Individually for the game, senior forward Bernard Edwards (Detroit, Mich./Warren Cousino) scored a game-high 24 points on seven-of-21 shooting (33.3 percent) and 10-of-11 (90.9 percent) at the free-throw line.  Senior guard Travis Schomaeker (Ottawa/Ottawa-Glandorf) was second with 23 points, with 15 points coming from behind the three-point line.  Rounding out the high scorers was senior guard Mason Roth (McComb) who scored 10 points.  In addition, senior forward Kent Tietje (Hamler/Patrick Henry) tallied a game and career-high 10 rebounds.  

The game remained close in the early minutes of the first half, but a 10-2 scoring run by Manchester (5-19, 4-13 HCAC) with the score deadlocked at 7-7, gave the Spartans an eight-point advantage, 17-9, with 13:48 left before halftime.  Defiance (18-6, 13-4 HCAC) responded with five unanswered points of its own to pull to within three points, 17-14, following a jumper by Edwards with 12:16 to go in the period.  The Yellow Jackets eventually came back to even the game at 22-22 thanks to a layup by senior guard Drew Frizell (Smithville) at the 8:24 minute mark.  DC could not move ahead on the scoreboard, however, but only trailed by three points, 39-36, at the break.

The second half began with a layup by Manchester, but a layup by Roth on Defiance's ensuing possession sparked a 10-2 DC run to put the Jackets up on top, 46-43, with 17:49 remaining in the game.  The Spartans came back to take the lead and led by four points, 51-47, before Defiance took the lead for good by outscoring Manchester, 14-2, that resulted in an eight-point advantage, 61-53, following a three-pointer by Schomaeker with 10:24 left.  Manchester made a final run and tied the game at 66-66 at the 7:35 mark, but would not take the lead as DC regained control and boasted a six-point margin, 74-68, with 4:32 to go thanks to another triple by Schomaeker.  The Jackets made good on all of their free-throws in the final seconds to secure the 86-81 victory.

Manchester had five players score in double figures led by Matt Brown with 17 points.  The duo of Chase Casteel and Caleb Jackson were second with 16 points each.  Brody Kirby was fourth with 15 points and Brady Dolezal added 13 points.

Defiance will conclude the regular season when it travels to Franklin, Ind. with a matchup against Franklin College on Saturday, Feb. 21.  The game will be part of a basketball doubleheader with the Yellow Jacket women's team.  The women will tip-off against Franklin at 2 p.m., followed by the men at 4 p.m.