Bryan Duncan figured he should waste little time sending Taylor Manning onto the floor.

“She was so nervous,” Free State High girls basketball coach Duncan said of the 6-foot sophomore, “I knew we had to get her in quick or she would hyperventilate.”

Manning entered a few minutes after the tipoff, and she sure didn’t look jittery, scoring a team-high 13 points as the Firebirds opened their season with a 54-40 victory over Maize on Saturday night in the FSHS gym.

“Taylor was really nervous before the game,” senior Kelsey Harrison said. “She keep saying, ‘What if I do wrong?’ And we said, ‘Taylor, it’s OK, it’s OK.'”

Manning certainly looked OK in her first high school outing. The problem was waiting for the tipoff. She had watched the Kansas-DePaul game on television – her dad is KU aide and former Kansas All-American Danny Manning – and then reported to Free State for the pregame ritual.

“I was so nervous before the KU game,” Manning said, “that I had to take a nap. But when I got here, the seniors gave me a positive outlook. They were very helpful.”

Manning was very helpful coming off the bench as the Firebirds opened with a decisive victory over a team that appeared in last season’s Class 6A state tournament.

Half of Manning’s six baskets were stick-backs.

“Taylor was good, and she’s going to get better,” Duncan said. “She was very confident on the floor.”

Senior Lauren Kimball was the only other Firebird to score in double figures. The 5-7 point guard scored 11 points, with seven coming at the free-throw line.

Free State started fast, forcing the Eagles to turn the ball over on six of their first seven possessions and roaring to a 30-14 halftime lead. Maize cut the deficit to eight (43-35) early in the fourth quarter, but the Eagles scored only two points in the last four minutes.

Duncan lamented the Firebirds’ 18 turnovers and countless missed shots underneath that resulted in 36 percent shooting (20 of 56).

“It was sloppy,” the Firebirds’ coach said, “but it was also the opening game, and the girls certainly had the jitters. We missed so many easy baskets, but they were effort shots. We played hard.”

Added Harrison, who finished with eight rebounds, seven points, five steals and three blocks: “Nothing fell for us. We didn’t play our best game by far.”

Next for the Firebirds will be Lansing at 3 p.m. Thursday in the three-day Bonner Springs Invitational.

Free State boys 68, Maize 65

Christian Ballard was late reporting to Free State High’s basketball team because of the Firebirds’ long run in the Class 6A football playoffs.

“My body is still aching a little from football,” Ballard said Saturday night.

His body may be aching, but there was no problem with his shooting, as the 6-4, 275-pound senior scored 18 points off the bench – most on jump hooks – to spark the Firebirds in their season opener.

“He had a fantastic night,” Free State coach Chuck Law said. “He’s critical to our success.”

With the score knotted at 54 and with about five minutes remaining, Ballard cashed a couple of charities, then nailed back-to-back hook shots to give the Firebirds the cushion they needed for the stretch run.

Ballard, an All-Sunflower League tight end, didn’t start because he has been nursing a knee injury since the end of football season.

“I wore a brace on it tonight,” Ballard said. “It’s nothing too serious, but I’ll be wearing a brace for two to three weeks.”

Weston Wiebe, a 6-4 junior starter, led the Firebirds with 20 points. Nick Devin added 13, including the ‘Birds’ only two three-point goals.

Next for the Firebirds will be Nixa, Mo., at 8:30 p.m. Thursday in the first round of the three-day Leavenworth Invitational.