The Manual Rams lost against the Richwoods Knights on January 8th, and unfortunately they wound up with the same result on Thursday. Manual's tough 65-39 defeat to the Knights might stick with them for a while. While losing is never fun, Manual can't take it too hard given the team's big disadvantage in MaxPreps' Illinois basketball rankings (they are ranked 282nd, while the Knights are ranked 54th).
Manual lost despite a true team effort on the offense, the best among them being Nyanna Payton, who dropped a double-double on ten points and 13 rebounds. Payton hasn't dropped below ten rebounds for eight straight games. Another player making a difference was Admyre Thompson, who scored three points along with nine steals and seven rebounds.
Manual dropped their record down to 7-15 with that loss, which was their third straight at home. As for Richwoods, their win bumped their record up to 18-8.
Both teams will have to hit the road in their upcoming games. Manual will square off against the Rockets at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday. As for Richwoods, they will head out on the road to take on the Panthers at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Washington is also coming in off of a big victory, so somebody is in for a big reversal of fortune.
