The Emporia High School boys basketball team bounced back for a 57-28 win over Manhattan CHIEF in the third-place game of the Bluestem Classic in El Dorado in Saturday afternoon.

The game was close early on, with the teams trading the first six baskets as Manhattan CHIEF led 7-6 before the Spartans went on a 6-0 run with baskets from Sheldon Stewart and two from River Peters to take a 12-7 lead. Manhattan CHIEF would cut it to 14-11 before Emporia would pull away with a 22-2 run that lasted well into the second quarter to make it a 36-13 ballgame. The Spartans would lead 38-16 at the half.

Emporia began the third quarter with a 10-0 run after Manhattan CHIEF made one free throw, extending its lead to 48-17. The Spartans led 53-23 after three and the running clock was in effect for the fourth quarter.

Head coach Lee Baldwin was glad to see his team bounce back with a complete game. “I thought we were locked in,” Baldwin said. “This mattered a lot to our guys and we were really aggressive from the get-go. It was a nice bounce back win and we were able to play 11 guys, so it was a total team effort.”

Cooper Rech led the Spartans with 14 points. Peters (12) and Stewart (10) joined him in double figures. Emporia had nine players get in the scorebook, and Baldwin was glad to see some of his depth players contribute.

“It’s huge having that type of balance and getting that many guys to contribute is obviously advantageous when you’re trying to get to 55-60 points a game,” Baldwin said. “The more guys we have that can be an offensive threat, the more difficult we’re going to be for other teams to prepare for.”

Emporia (7-3) will return to Centennial League play when it travels to Junction City on Thursday night.

C Tournament

Emporia C 39

Shawnee Heights C 37

Emporia C 38

Washburn Rural C 42

Emporia C 60

Topeka West C 41 

C Record: 3-4