Big second quarter propels Manila past Gosnell

A dominant second quarter propelled the visiting Manila Lions to a 63-38 victory over Gosnell on Wednesday night.

Ahead just 13-12 after the first, the Lions held the Pirates to just three points in the second while going on to score 21 themselves. Manila contained Gosnell’s offense with their half-court trapping defense which forced the Pirates into several turnovers.

On the opposite side of the ball, Manila connected on four three-pointers in the frame. Their rhythm from beyond the arc was sparked by an offensive rebound on the quarter’s first play to give senior Jake Baltimore an open look.

On the following play, Baltimore scored three more points the traditional way, driving to the rim for the basket plus a foul.

A two-point jumper from junior Brayden Nunnally, followed by a corner three from senior Dax Davidson put Gosnell behind 24-12 early in the quarter.

The Pirates got their first point of the frame as senior TJ Reed converted on one of two free throws attempts. Moments later Reed connected on a pull up jump shot for the team’s first field goal of the frame as well.

However, Gosnell’s 3-0 run was short-lived as Nunnally drained back-to-back triples in each corner with just over a minute left in the half. Manila carried a 34-15 advantage into halftime and kept the Pirates at bay for the remainder of the game.

Still, Gosnell stole some momentum back from the Lions early in the third quarter. After scoring one basket himself, junior Tadarian Partee dished out two assists en route to trimming the deficit to 13.

Still, Manila had an answer. They used a triple from sophomore Luke Kirk to stem the tide and regained their edge. They finished the third ahead 42-26 and used a pair of Gonsell turnovers early in the fourth to push their lead past the 20-point mark.

The Lions finished the game with four players in double-figures as Nunnally scored a game-high 19, followed by 14 from Kirk, 11 from Baltimore and 10 from Davidson.

For Gosnell, Reed finished with nine while Partee added eight.