FRANKLIN, Ind. – Sophomore
Brandon Christlieb and first-year
Ty Lynas provided some late game heroics as Manchester rallied past Franklin College 83-82 on Saturday afternoon in the Spurlock Center.
After trailing by 10 in the 2
nd half, the Black & Gold stormed all the way back to tie the game in final minute of regulation. A turnaround jumper in the paint by
Brandon Christlieb (Ashley, Ind./Prairie Heights) with 13.8 seconds gave the Spartan and 81-79 lead over the Grizzlies.
After a Franklin timeout,
Ty Lynas' (Crawfordsville, Ind./Crawfordsville) outstanding ball pressure forced a steal and a foul by Franklin's Jalen Love. The first-year calmly stepped up to the charity stripe and swished home both foul shot attempts – putting the Spartans ahead 83-79 with just four seconds left in regulation.
Brandon Christlieb would lead all scorers on Saturday afternoon, finishing with a game-high 25 points. Christlieb shot 9-17 from the floor and was a perfect 6-6 from the free throw line.
Ty Lynas added 18 points on the strength of 7-13 shooting. Lynas was also perfect from the free throw line, going 4-4.
Bryant Smith (West Lafayette, Ind./Harrison) added 14 points for the Black & Gold after shooting 6-7 in Saturday's game.
CJ Hampton (Hammond, Ind./Griffith) chipped in 11 points and seven boards in the winning effort. Hampton made several clutch plays during the Spartans' late comeback, including converting an old fashioned three-point play that tied the game at 79 with just over a minute left to play.
Manchester shot 50.8 percent (31-61) in Saturday's win over Franklin College. The Black & Gold also turned the ball over just four times.
Franklin finished shooting 48.4 percent (30-62) on Saturday. The Grizzlies held a 41-28 rebounding advantage in the game. Matt Krause led Franklin with 21 points and 16 rebounds. Ty Wright also had a double-double with 19 points and 10 rebounds.
The Spartans (8-11, 7-5 HCAC) will return to Stauffer-Wolfe Arena on Wednesday February 2 to host the Defiance College Yellow Jackets at 7:30 p.m.
Franklin (9-10, 5-7 HCAC) will host Transylvania University on Wednesday February 2.