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Manor boys basketball gets defensive in rivalry win over LBJ

thomas jones, austin american-statesman
·4 min read

MANOR — When John A. Smith took over the Manor boys basketball program this offseason, one thing immediately stood out about the new Mustangs coach.

“He doesn’t even care about the offensive end; he doesn’t care about any shots you take,” Manor junior guard Alan Guyton said. “He’s all about that defense.”

Standing next to Guyton after host Manor pulled away from LBJ for a 62-39 nondistrict win on Tuesday, Smith chuckled at his guard’s description. But he didn’t disagree. Like any hoops coach, Smith understands that steady stops lead to stellar shots on the other end of the court. That dedication to defense has Manor on a roll entering its District 25-6A opener Friday at McNeil.

“We’re playing a beautiful brand of basketball right now,” said Smith, who led Northeast to the second round of the Class 5A playoffs a year ago before taking the Manor job. “And we are battle-tested. We’re not cupcaking it up.”

But “basketball is about next man up,” Smith said.

Manor (11-5) has notable wins over powers such as Port Arthur Memorial, Houston Clear Lake, San Antonio Johnson and defending 6A Region IV finalist San Antonio Clark despite playing without star senior Jayden Barrs, an all-Centex selection a year ago who's out for the season with an injury.

“Jayden is our heart, our soul, our leader,” Smith said. “But my pregame speech tonight was about looking for the leader within. We have to cover for each other and pull each other up, and the guys have done that. Basketball’s about helping each other through the ups and downs.”

Guyton is part of a loaded junior class that filled every starting spot against LBJ. But he said Barrs' senior leadership remains, even if Barrs can only watch from the bench.

“It’s his senior year, so we’re playing for him,” Guyton said. “He’s still a big part of this team. He’s at practice every day, he’s with us every minute. We have to have that same mentality that he brought, which is all about getting that win.”

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Getting that win against LBJ meant getting after it on defense. Guyton, who led Manor with 21 points, set the tone early with two steals that led to two buckets on LBJ’s first two possessions. LBJ hung tough until midway through the second period, when the Mustangs reeled off 10-2 run in two minutes to seize a 28-20 halftime edge.

The Mustangs sealed the win in the third period, when they held LBJ without a basket for the first 5 minutes, 50 seconds and took a 43-28 lead into the fourth.

Ironically, a pair of Manor players with deep LBJ roots led the charge. Guyton’s father, Alan Guyton, played for LBJ coach Freddie Roland on the 1999 LBJ team that reached the Class 4A state tournament. Ray Jackson III, who had 17 points, is the son of LBJ legend Ray Jackson, a member of Michigan's famed Fab Five who helped lead the Jags to the state tournament in 1990.

Because of the deep demographic shifts in Austin over the past generation, LBJ’s games with Manor have supplanted its series with Northeast as East Austin’s fiercest rivalry. The community bonds between the programs are strong, which was evident after the game when Roland posed with the younger Guyton as Guyton’s father took a photo.

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“This Manor group, they’re a good team,” said Roland, the dean of Austin-area coaches who has led LBJ to at least a share of a district title in 25 consecutive seasons. “You can tell they’ve been together awhile, and they get after you.”

Unlike Manor, LBJ (5-11) has plenty of new faces on its team. CJ Carter had all of his team-high 11 points in the first half and Malkeyce Harris had nine points and six rebounds. The Jags dropped their 24-5A opener against McCallum last week, but Roland thinks a rugged early schedule that included 6A playoff contenders such as Stony Point, Westwood, Cedar Ridge and Manor will help his team make a push for another district title.

“Last year, we had a bunch that had a lot of seniors and a lot of experience,” Roland said. “This year, we don’t have the same things. But we’ll get there; we’ll make a run. These young kids will learn.”

This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Manor boys basketball gets defensive in rivalry win over LBJ