Excerpt from the Dayton Daily News
James Manns probably can’t keep up his torrid pace, racking up more than a point per minute over the last three games and leading Wright State with a 19.3 average over that span.
But the unheralded third-year sophomore has taken on a major role with star center Loudon Love out with a fractured elbow, and he’s playing with an ease and confidence that seem to swell with every bucket.
“I just try to go out there and play freely. The coaches always tell me just to have fun and don’t worry about making a mistake,” he said.
The 6-7 forward had 19 points, making three 3-pointers, and snagged eight rebounds in a 92-50 win over Mississippi Valley State before 2,773 fans Tuesday.
Tanner Holden also had 19 points. Jordan Ash, a grad transfer from Northwestern, tied his career-high with 11. And Grant Basile had a career-best 14 rebounds.
The lefty Manns didn’t even play in five of the first seven games and looked destined for mop-up duty until Love was injured Nov. 26. He scored just two points in the first two games after that, but he’s had a combined 58 points in 53 minutes against Indiana State, Southern and the winless Delta Devils.
“There’s no way to explain it,” Holden said of Manns’ offensive onslaught. “You can be in his face and he’s still going to shoot it. He can do about everything, and his shot is money every time.”
