(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
MANITOU SPRINGS — Every game serves a different purpose for a season. Manitou Springs and Peyton both advanced in last year’s postseason, but neither team finished exactly where they wanted.
They clashed Friday night in Manitou in a makeup game of what was supposed to be each team’s season opener. The Class 3A No. 4 Mustangs rolled to a 51-26 but each team took a different lesson from the outcome.
Manitou (2-0 overall) is coming off its first outright Tri-Peaks League championship in program history. After losing two significant seniors, the team feels prime to repeat that feat from last year and try to accomplish something special in 2021.
“Last year we built a lot of really good momentum,” senior Isaiah Thomas said. “We’re coming into this season off a really heartbreaking loss and we’re coming back hungry. We lost some great seniors, but we have a lot of young kids coming up and stepping into really important roles.”
Thomas led the Manitou scoring effort with 13 in the win, but the real story is what the team did defensively. The team allowed just one field goal in the first half and gave a glimpse of their ability to limit baskets just as much as they can score them.
(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)
“I thought they did a good job of being patient,” coach Brian Vecchio. “They didn’t try to force things on the offensive end, they stuck to just defense and rebounding which is where we want our backbone to be.”
It wasn’t an ideal start to the season for the 2A No. 7 Panthers (0-1), but coach Jedd Sims knows the value an early game against the Mustangs will bring as they try and make their way back to the Class 2A Great 8.
Sims hoped the Panthers could slow the pace and keep the game close. He felt that plan gave his guys an opportunity to make a move late.
“Our plan was to take the air out of the ball, chew up their legs if we could,” Sims said. “We were confident that if we could keep it close, we could make a run late in the game. Unfortunately, some turnovers led to some easy buckets. They’re just good. It’s hard to stall when they’re just on you defensively like that.”
Gavin Miller and Brennen Meyers each scored seven points to lead the team, all of which came in the second half for both players.
As Manitou chases its second regular season league title in as many years, it showed a versatile offensive attack when needed. Thomas’ points came from mid-range jumpers and attacking the basket while the Mustangs got plenty of points in the paint as sophomore John Maynard scored 12 and senior Lars Marquardt added six.
“Offensively, we’re a great threat,” Thomas said. “We have some big guys and some shooters, but our defense is where we want to shine. Stopping teams from being comfortable is going to be what gets us to the next level.”
Manitou begins league play on Monday with a trip to Florence.
(Dan Mohrmann/CHSAANow.com)