Clayton and Connor Wilmsmeyer combined for 38 points Tuesday night to power the New Franklin Bulldogs past Community 70-57 Tuesday night in the opening round of the Sturgeon Tournament.

For New Franklin, seeded third, it was all about having everyone back on the floor as a team. “It was nice to have everyone back from sickness and injuries,” said New Franklin coach Ross Dobson.

The Bulldogs jumped ahead early, taking an 18-15 lead after eight minutes. New Franklin lit up the scoreboard in the second half, outscoring sixth-see3ded Community 21-13 to take a 39-28 lead into the break.

Despite a few hiccups from not playing with a full rotation in recent games, New Franklin further extended its lead to 17 points after three quarters. The Bulldogs finished out with a strong 13-point victory to stay on the winners’ side of the bracket. 

“There were a few times you could tell we hadn’t played together in a few weeks,” Dobson said. “We expected those things to happen with everyone back and our rotations changing once again. I am excited to see this group finish out the season.”

Clayton Wilmsmeyer, a junior, led all scorers with 24 points. His younger brother Connor, a junior, added 14. Sophomore Tanner Bishop rounded out the Bulldogs’ double-digit scoring with 13 points. 

Senior Tre Cowans and sophomore Drake Clark each scored eight points for New Franklin.

Mason Caroll led the Community offense with 14 points on the night.

New Franklin (11-5) moves to face second-seeded Westran with a 7:30 p.m. tipoff on Thursday at the high school. The winner will advance to the finals against either Salisbury or South Callaway at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday at the high school.

In other games, top-seeded Salisbury handily defeated eight-seeded Paris 77-30. Fourth-seeded South Callaway defeated host team Sturgeon, the fifth seed, 65-54. Westran handily won 61-27 over seventh-seeded New Bloomfield.