The New Franklin boys pulled off an exciting conference victory on Homecoming on Friday night, snapping Cairo’s eight-game winning streak with a 49-47 decision.

The go-ahead basket was made by senior Caden Schlotzhauer, who also surpassed 1,000 career points in the game for a Homecoming to remember. He then sank a final free throw to put New Franklin up by two as the Bulldogs fended off the Bearcats in the final possession to hold on for the win.

“That was awesome. He played a great game,” said New Franklin coach Cory Nicholson about his senior scoring leader.

Schlotzhauer finished with a game-high 23 points and went 5-for-6 from the line.

“He was a little impatient in the first half. We talked to him and got him in the right headspace. I thought in the second half, he played extremely well. He’s a heck of a player when he’s doing stuff the right way. We’re lucky to have him,” Nicholson said.

The win ended a three-game losing skid for the Bulldogs and snapped an eight-game streak of victories for Cairo. Nicholson said he discussed those numbers heading into Friday’s game. “Winning is contagious, and losing is contagious. So, this was a huge win for us.”

Friday’s game was truly a tale of two halves. Like two pugilists feeling out one another in the opening rounds, a slow first half gave way to trading blows with 20 ties or lead changes over the third and fourth quarters. New Franklin took an early lead on a 3-pointer by senior Lane Hackman midway through the first quarter on the way to a 12-6 advantage after eight minutes. By halftime, Cairo cut the lead to one point, 20-19, holding the Bulldogs to just three field goals and one trip to the line in the second quarter.

It wasn’t until the third quarter that things really began open up, with a two-quarter sprint to the finish. The Bearcats outscored New Franklin 15-12 in the third to take a 34-32 lead into the final period.

New Franklin reversed its position with a 6-0 run in the first 86 seconds of the fourth quarter. Four of those points came from Schlotzhauer as the Bulldogs pulled ahead. But both teams fought to the end, swapping the lead six more times until Schlotzhauer put his team in the lead for good on a dribble-in jumper from the right side of the lane.

Bearcats’ coach Brian Winkler called two nearly back-to-back timeouts in the final 16.5 seconds, but an open jump shot from the lane by junior Wright Sander bounced right and was rebounded by Schlotzhauer, who drew the foul as time was expiring. He sank the first of two free throws to give the Bulldogs a two-point lead with 8.4 seconds left.

Cairo rebounded the missed second shot, and with 1.1 ticks on the clock, junior Clayton Messer shot off a desperation three that caromed off the rim as the final buzzer sounded.

“It was blow for blow,” Nicholson recalled after the game. “They’re a good, talented team with a good coach. Coming into it, we knew they had some athletes who would make some tough shots. So that’s a big win for us.”

New Franklin benefitted from a solid game by senior Landon Shaw, who posted 10 points. He challenged Cairo’s front in the lane, drawing three fouls in the third quarter, and sank four of six free throws.

“I can’t see enough good things about him. He had a rough day. He comes in and battles it, and it shows what type of kid he is,” Nicholson said.

Lane Hackman posted nine points on the day with the team’s only 3-point basket of the night. Noah Hackman added six points. Cairo stretched its defense, pressuring the New Franklin perimeter and limiting shots at the arc.

“We shot poorly and didn’t get a lot of quality shots,” Nicholson said. “But we still walked away with a win, which means we did a lot of stuff right.”

Cairo junior Kason Ryan led the Bearcats with 15 points, followed by Sander with 13.

Nicholson focused the Bulldogs’ defense on Cairo senior Shaun Luecke, who finished with six points.

“Our boys played super tough and held their best player to only six points. I’m very proud of this win,” Nicholson said.

The Bulldogs remain in the midst of a Central Activities Conference action as the regular season winds into its final stretch. On Tuesday, after the Advertiser had gone to press, New Franklin hosted rival Slater (13-9). The Bulldogs won a 58-54 decision at Slater in the team’s first bout in December.

“We played them to a close game last time. We know it’s going to be a dog fight. They’ve got a good, athletic team, and it’s going to be a tough one for us,” Nicholson said.

New Franklin travels to Sturgeon on Friday the 13th before returning home to host Pilot Grove on Feb. 17 for Pink Out. The Bulldogs close the regular season with a rescheduled CAC matchup against one of the conference’s best teams at Glasgow on Feb. 19.

New Franklin currently holds the best record among Class 2 District 8 teams but could still face a gauntlet in the district tournament hosted by Tipton starting Feb. 24. The Bulldogs have only played one potential district opponent so far this season. That was Harrisburg, against which they won 51-41 on Jan. 21.