West Hancock used a 13-0 run in the second quarter to take control and opened the third quarter with a 7-0 run as the Eagles rolled to a 67-51 victory over IKM-Manning in a class 1A quarterfinal round game.
West Hancock is making its second straight trip to the state tournament and that experience was an advantage.
“I think we were a lot more focused this year when we came in”, said senior guard Connor Sonius, who led the Eagles with 20 points. “Last year we looked like we were star struck coming into this big building and this year we came in more focused and we knew what we needed to do to get a win”
A Ben Wagner jumper with 6:48 remaining in the second quarter gave IKM-Manning a 20-18 advantage. It would be the Wolves final lead of the game.
“Not getting back on defense a few times really hurt us”, said IKM-Manning coach Keith Wagner. “We always talk about the first three minutes of the second half being big and they obviously won those three minutes.”
Kyle Wagner led the Wolves with 15 points as they end the season with a record of 22-3.