NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. — Manchester (0-1) lost to Albion (1-1) 85-75 on Tuesday after taking a 41-35 halftime lead. Manchester scored 34 points in the second half while Albion finished with 50 after the break.
Manchester's first-half offense came in perimeter-driven stretches. After falling behind 24-19, Manchester scored eight straight over three possessions to move ahead 27-24, a stretch that overlapped with a three-3-pointer burst. Manchester added another outside-shooting run before halftime, making three more 3-pointers from the 3:32 mark through the final second, with
Chris Hardy's 3-pointer with one second left sending Manchester into halftime ahead 41-35. The game was still within reach late in the second half, as Hardy scored with 2:08 remaining to cut Albion's lead to 76-73, but Albion got late baskets from Mason Brodi and Dwayne Ray Jr., including Ray's score with 1:11 left that made it 78-73.
Manchester finished 28 of 64 from the field and made 11 of 30 from 3-point range, while Albion went 22 of 49 overall and 7 of 17 from 3-point range. The free-throw gap was substantial, with Albion making 34 of 45 at the line compared with Manchester's 8 of 18. Albion also held a 42-34 rebounding edge and a 24-7 advantage in fast-break points, while Manchester received 36 bench points. Hardy finished with 22 points and four assists, and
Silas Smith added 14 points with four made 3-pointers.
Manchester erased a 24-19 deficit with an 8-0 first-half run, getting back-to-back 3-pointers from Smith and
Mike Fountain before
Chris Hardy turned a steal into a dunk for a 27-24 lead with 6:21 left. Earlier, Albion had pushed ahead 23-14, but Manchester stayed within range behind perimeter shooting and second-chance production, including
Wyatt Weaver's offensive rebound and dunk and
Nate Luce's assisted 3-pointer. After Albion briefly went back in front 29-28, Smith hit another 3 at 3:32, Luce added one at 3:00 and Fountain scored inside as Manchester moved back ahead. Hardy added a jumper with 1:44 remaining and closed the half with a 3-pointer off
Noah Enyeart's assist with one second left, sending Manchester into halftime with a 41-35 lead.
With 11:21 left,
Silas Smith's assisted 3-pointer and
Chris Hardy's fast-break jumper pushed Manchester's lead to 61-47, but Albion later erased the margin and closed out an 85-75 win. Earlier,
Noah Enyeart scored twice inside,
Wyatt Weaver converted a Hardy feed and
Nate Luce hit a 3-pointer as Manchester stretched the score to 52-38 by the 15:45 mark. Manchester still led 68-60 after Fountain split two free throws with 6:01 remaining, but Mason Brodi's 3-pointer tied it at 68-68 with 4:43 left, and the teams were level again at 69-69 after
Caden Rice's free throw and Bowen Moore's foul shot. After Albion moved ahead 71-69 at 3:30, Manchester got free throws from Luce and Hardy to stay within 76-73 with 2:08 left, but Dwayne Ray Jr. scored at 1:11 and Brodi followed a Manchester turnover with a fast-break layup at 57 seconds as Albion pulled away. Manchester shot 12-for-33 in the half and went 7-for-14 at the line, while Albion went 21-for-26 on free throws and held a 26-18 rebounding edge.
Hardy scored 22 points on 9-of-17 shooting and added six rebounds and four assists. Smith made four 3-pointers and finished with 14 points. Luce added 11 points with three 3-pointers. Enyeart collected eight rebounds, including three offensive boards, and scored eight points.
Up next, Manchester travels to Ada, Ohio, to face Ohio Northern University on Saturday, Nov. 14, 2026, at 1 p.m.
