Mangas Saluted Again For Stellar Play
WARSAW – Kyle Mangas put on a show Saturday at the Michigan City Regional.
The Warsaw star has been rewarded for his pair of performances too.
Mangas has earned the IBCA/Subway Player of the Week honors for District 1. It marks the second straight week that the Tiger standout has earned the statewide honor for his play.
The 6-3 senior guard finished his career in a Tiger uniform in some style this past weekend. Mangas scored a career-high 47 points as Warsaw beat East Chicago Central 61-59 in the Class 4-A regional semifinal game. He was 15-23 overall from the field, including 2-5 on 3-pointers, and 15-17 from the free throw line in the win. Mangas also had nine rebounds, two assists and three steals.
Mangas, whose previous career high was 30 points twice during the regular season this year, scored his team’s first 16 points of the game in the semifinal. He also hit the two game-winning free throws with 2.1 seconds to play in the second overtime period. His 47 points tied for the third-best scoring output in program history. Nic Moore has the record with 50 points, while Mike Niles scored 49 and Kevin Ault 47.
Mangas scored a game-high 24 points in a 50-46 loss to Merrillville in the regional title game Saturday night. He was 7-14 from the field, including 3-8 from distance, and 7-8 from the line as the defending regional champion Tigers came up just short. Mangas also had two rebounds, four steals and an assist in the loss.
Mangas, who will play at Indiana Wesleyan University next season, finished fourth in program history in career scoring with 1,450 points. He trails only Ault (2,028), Moore (1,891) and Jeff Grose (1.749). Ault and Grose both won Mr. Basketball honors, while Moore was a runner-up for the award.
Mangas led the Tigers to back-to-back sectional championships for the first time since 1996-97. Warsaw finished its season 18-10 overall and 7-0 in the Northern Lakes Conference. The Tigers became the first team in league history this year to finish 7-0 for three straight seasons in conference play.