By Greg Gielczyk
LocalSportsJournal.com
MANISTEE — The Manistee’s boys basketball team pulled away from the Orchard View Cardinals in the second half Thursday night and then cruised to a 59-31 victory at home.
It was the Mariners’ second straight win and lifted them back to the .500 level in a season that has seen its share of twists and turns.
After winning four of their first six games, the Mariners then hit a rough patch, losing six of their next eight. The district tournament is only a couple weeks away.
The Mariners are finally back to full strength, too, after playing the last few games with six guys on the sick list, including Jaret Edmondson, their only player with real size. Edmondson’s absence left the Mariners undersized, but others stepped in to fill the void.
“We’re undersized in there, but Mason (Gunnett), Jacob Scharp and Landin (Sowa) really battled all night on the boards for us,” said Manistee coach Zach Bialik. “I love the intensity of the kids right now and they’re enjoying being around each other and the coaches. It’s a lot of fun. We made some shots tonight, and it’s amazing what that can do for you.”
It was a slow moving first half, as each team refrained from a full-court press and both were walking the ball up the floor. Manistee, though, made enough shots to take a 23-10 lead at the half.
The Mariners blew the game open in the third period, blasting the Cardinals, 22-9, and building their lead to 45-19, which proved insurmountable for OV.
Gunnett scored a game-high 15 points to lead the Mariners, while Sowa had 13 with three 3-pointers and Scharp added eight.
Muhammad Davis led the Cardinals with eight.
The Mariners improved their record to 9-9 overall, 2-7 in the conference. Manistee hits the road next Tuesday for another conference game at Whitehall.
Orchard View fell to 4-13 overall, 1-7 in the conference. The Cardinals travel to Oakridge for another conference game next Friday.
