NORTH MANCHESTER, IND. – Manchester University made an early second half run at visiting Hanover College Saturday, Dec. 5, but it wasn't enough to reverse a tough shooting start.

The Spartans, dipping to 2-5 overall and 0-2 in the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference, converted on less than 30 percent of their shots from the field and hit only one of six three-point attempts in the opening 20 minutes, as Hanover (2-4, 1-0 HCAC) bolted out to a 37-23 halftime advantage. Coach Gerad Good's squad brought the home crowd inside Stauffer-Wolfe Arena to its feet in the opening section of the second half, though, trimming a once 21-point deficit to 52-41 with 13:45 to go. The Panthers stemmed the tide, from that point, with four straight points and were off to an 82-64 decision.

Senior guard Brady Dolezal (Tipton, Ind.) topped the points' column for MU with 21 points to go with five rebounds and a pair of assists. Sophomore forward Enis Becirevic (Fort Wayne, Ind.) tallied 11 off the bench and also came up with five rebounds and three steals, and the junior guard tandem of Chase Casteel (Monrovia, Ind.) and Blake Brouwer (Elkhart, Ind.) registered 10 points apiece. Casteel just missed being in double-double territory with nine boards.

Manchester University continues HCAC action Saturday, Dec. 12. The Black and Gold travel to Mt. St. Joseph University for a 5 p.m. tipoff.

NOTES: Dolezal led the Spartans scoring-wise for the third time this season. It was his second 20-point-plus effort … Becirevic logged his second double-digit point total and a personal single-game high in rebounds.