The top-seeded New Franklin boys came up five points short in their title defense at their own tournament on Saturday. Rival Westran, seeded second, claimed the first-place trophy with a 55-50 win.

“Westran simply outplayed us, and I was out-coached tonight,” said New Franklin coach Jim Schlotzhauer. 

The Bulldogs entered the tournament with a 10-1 record, their only loss coming to defending state champion Salisbury in the second game of the season. New Franklin won last year’s tournament with a defeat over Westran in the championship.

But New Franklin had been without a key part of its starting lineup for the entire tournament. Senior point guard Owen Curry is no longer on the team due to activities that took place off the court. Schlotzhauer said his absence affected the way the Bulldogs handled full-court pressure.

“We are adjusting to a big roster change that will take some time to work itself out. But with some big games coming up, we need to make progress in that area quickly,” Schlotzhauer said. “I think you could see it all week. Guys are having to do things that they haven’t had to before, and it shows. We have time to get it right. It may just be ugly for a while until we do.”

In Saturday’s final, New Franklin jumped out to a quick 9-5 lead thanks to back-to-back 3-pointers by senior Tanner Bishop.

Westran inched back, but Bishop was sighted in from the arc. He sank a final triple with 31 seconds left to help New Franklin to a 17-12 lead after one quarter.

But the first quarter would be the only period New Franklin would win. And a five-point margin would not be wide enough to endure Westran’s pressure for three more periods.

The Hornets packed the lane with their big guys, led by tall forward Marshall Kitchen, to take away New Franklin’s inside game. That meant passing the ball around and settling for jump shots that simply weren’t falling.

 “We struggled to adjust to their physicality in the paint and simply didn’t execute as well as they did,” Schlotzhauer said. “When they needed a big shot, they seemed to get a good look and put it in. I thought our kids fought hard, but we couldn’t overcome our poor shooting with effort alone.”

New Franklin made just 35% of their two-point field goals and shot 24% from the arc. Possibly the poorest part of their game came from the free-throw line. The Bulldogs finished 9-for-19 (47%) from the line.

Westran outscored New Franklin 16-12 in the second quarter to come within one point at halftime, 29-28. The Hornets had a chance to take the lead, but senior Brady Hollman missed two free throws with 46 seconds left. The team then turned the ball over in the final seconds to walk into the break down by one point.

New Franklin started the third quarter with four quick points from senior Drake Clark in the first minute to go back up by five. But Westran went on a seven-point run in the bottom half of the period to take a 37-35 lead with just over a minute on the clock.

The Bulldogs re-tied the game with a 2-point shot by Bishop. But a pair of free throws with no time left on the clock by Kitchen gave Westran a two-point lead heading into the final period.

New Franklin was held to just two points on 2-for-6 free-throw shooting over the first half of the fourth quarter. Meanwhile, Westran surged ahead with seven points from the field. Finally, with 4:02 on the clock, New Franklin caught a break. Kitchen fouled out, which the Bulldogs’ hoped would open their inside game.

But the shots didn’t fall.

New Franklin failed to make a field goal for the first seven minutes of the fourth quarter. Instead, the Bulldogs made all their points from the line on 5-for-10 shooting. Bishop finally broke the drought with a 2-point shot with a minute left to make it a six-point game. But by then, New Franklin was forced to foul to stop the clock. Westran made just enough free throws to stay in front, banking five of eight from the line over the final 56 seconds.

Jake Marshall and Bishop sank back-to-back 3-pointers to make it a one-possession game. But a turnover with 21 seconds all but canceled the Bulldogs’ chances.

Westran freshman Jordan Black converted two shots from the line with 16 seconds left to widen the gap by two possessions and clinch the win for the Hornets.

The win returned the first-place trophy to the Hornets, who have now won the tournament three out of the last four years.

Bishop led New Franklin with a game-high 20 points with three baskets from the arc and 3-for-4 free-throw shooting. Clark followed with 15 points. Normally an inside threat, he sank a pair of 3-pointers, one each in the first and fourth quarters.

Senior Connor Wilmsmeyer added seven points but struggled from the line, converting just five of 13 attempts. Marshall followed with six points, and Rylan Hundley chipped in two.

For the Hornets, senior Trent Brandow led with 17 points. Kitchen and Black each added 12 points.

New Franklin and Westran have quite a history. While both are Mid-Missouri teams, they typically only meet in tournaments. In fact, the last 18 matchups have been in tournament play, with New Franklin holding a 12-6 edge in a streak that dates back to February 2015.

The two teams are not scheduled to play again this season but could meet again in the Sturgeon Tournament later this month or in the Class 2 District Tournament in February.

New Franklin was slated to have just two more home games in January. The first was scheduled for Tuesday against Glasgow but was postponed until Thursday due to weather. The Bulldogs then embark on a three-game road trip starting Friday at Community. They don’t return home until Jan. 30, when they host Class 4 Boonville.