The Manteno boys basketball found itself playing for a Kankakee Holiday Tournament blue division title for the third year in a row on Sunday, but after taking first place the previous two times, had to settle for silver against Christ the King in 2025.

The Panthers (7-6) fell 65-52 to the Gladiators (11-2), seeing a three-point halftime deficit grow in the second half.

The Panthers finished the tournament at 2-1, getting a 60-49 win over Peotone in the season’s third matchup between the rivals on Friday and beating St. Anne 50-48 in the semis Saturday.

Senior Braden Campbell said, despite the loss Sunday, the team’s performance in the tournament has them feeling good heading into the new year.

“We were going through kind of a cold streak and we really picked it up this weekend,” he said. “Getting our get back on Peotone after losing the second time against them, and beating them this time, that really stepped us in the right direction.

“We just kept playing hard and wanted to win this tournament, but fell a little short.”

Manteno found itself playing catchup for the most of the first quarter until an Eric Eldridge 3-pointer at the buzzer tied it up 14-14 heading into the second.

A Campbell 3-pointer in the second gave the Panthers a 19-16 lead, their first of the game. The Gladiators then threatened to pull away with a 12-2 run, but Manteno cut it back to a 32-29 deficit by halftime.

It was all Gladiators in the third as they took a 50-36 lead into the fourth. Manteno fought back a bit and got as close as 57-50, but Christ the King closed things out from there.

Sophomore Ramsey Owens led the team with 18 points, nine of which came in the first quarter. He also got off to a hot start in the opening round against Peotone, scoring 12 points in the first quarter.

“I’m just warming up and just being confident shooting the ball,” he said of his strong starts. “Being ready to shoot any time I get it, taking shots even if I miss, I’m just thinking the next one will go in.”

Owens part of a large sophomore class that has been been leaned on heavily throughout the season. He started Sunday along with fellow sophomores Dylan Polito, Quinn Campbell and Cade Bechard while Jack Gotkowski continues to contribute off the bench.

Head coach Zack Myers said this young group has done a good job adjusting to varsity throughout this first half of the season.

“Every game we play, it’s like we’re learning something new about ourselves and making those strides,” he said. “It’s just something we’ve got to keep plugging away at, and I look forward to the second half of the season.

Owens was the team’s leading scorer at the KHT, scoring 15 points per game. He was named to the All-Tournament team along with Campbell, who averaged 14.3 points per game.

Campbell was second on the team with 13 points. Polito added eight and Eldridge added seven.

Sunday’s championship game also brought a familiar face back to Kankakee.

Christ the King head coach Troy Caldwell is a Kankakee graduate. Now in his eighth season with the Gladiators, and fresh off a Class 2A third-place finish at state last season, Cladwell was coaching in his hometown gym for the first time Sunday.

“It’s good to come back home,” he said. “This is where it all began for me. I’m just thankful to God to be able to come back to see my community, to see how well my community is doing. I was involved so much.

“...This is the place I was raised and made me the man I am. It’s a blessing to come back.”

Elsewhere in the blue division, St. Anne (9-5) downed River Valley Conference rival Clifton Central (10-4) 65-61 in a wild double-overtime classic of a third-place game. No individual stats were available from that game.

Momence (8-6) fell 64-49 in the fifth-place game to Armstrong, getting 17 points and four steals from Erick Castillo, 13 points and three steals from Aiden Smith and eight points and nine rebounds from Tommy Rounds.

Peotone (7-6) bounced back from a pair of KHT losses to beat Grant Park (0-11) 80-22 for seventh. No individual stats were available for Peotone. Grant Park was led by Rigo Venegas with nine points and Luis Maldonado with five.