NORTH MANCHESTER, Ind. - The Spartans suffered a heartbreaking loss to rival Anderson University on January 4 inside Stauffer-Wolfe Arena. The Ravens took Wednesday night's contest 99-97. 

After a back-and-forth start to the game, the Spartans took an 11-point lead with 12:24 on the clock. Manchester continued to grow their lead, taking a 60-41 lead going to halftime. 

Manchester maintained a strong lead throughout most of the second half, but the Ravens fought back, bringing the game within one point with 1:25 left on the clock. Two good free throws by Mitch Mendenhall (New Haven, Ind., Woodlan) gave the Spartans back a one-point lead with less than a minute remaining, but a good layup and free throw by the Ravens with 16 seconds on the clock  would secure the 99-97 win for Anderson. 

Camden Smith led the Ravens with 28 points during Wednesday's contest. Tate Ivanyo had a double-double after scoring 24 points and pulling down 10 rebounds for Anderson. Jordan Gadis chipped in 22 points while Gavin Dowling added 10 points for the Ravens. As a team, the Ravens shot 59.3% (32-54) from the field and 66.7% (28-42) from the free throw line. 

Bryant Smith (West Lafayette, Ind., Harrison) finished the night with a career-high 34 points, shooting 7-12 from beyond the three-point arc. Ty Lynas (Crawfordsville, Ind., Crawfordsville) added 23 points while Zach Sawyer (Columbus, Ohio, Bishop Watterson) collected his second career double-double, scoring 15 points and pulling down 13 rebounds. Quentez Columbus (South Bend, Ind., Adams) chipped in 14 points for the Spartans and had a team-high 8 assists and 3 steals on the night. As a team, the Spartans shot 47.4% (37-78) from the field and 55.6% (10-18) from the free throw line. 

Up next, the Manchester men's and women's basketball teams will travel to Mount Saint Joseph for an HCAC doubleheader on Saturday, January 7. The women will tip-off against the Lions at 1:00 p.m. with the men to follow at 3:00 p.m.