(New Buffalo, MI) - Dreams of a District 4 championship for the surging New Buffalo High School boys’ basketball team were laid to rest Wednesday night after the Bison lost 63-42 to a much stronger Michigan Lutheran squad in the second round of the post-season tournament at home.

 

New Buffalo, which won just two games with mostly freshman last season, began this year winning just one of their first seven games before going on a 12-4 tear.

 

Head Coach Nate Tripp said he felt the game would have been more competitive, had it not been for key players like sophomores James Shaw playing with a freshly sprained ankle, and Nick Haskins battling an illness on the court.

 

“Lutheran is a great team. I just think the timing was bad for our guys,” he said.

 

He also felt more fouls should have been called on the taller, physically stronger, sharp-shooting opponents. In the second half, a double technical foul was called on Tripp for exploding from his frustration with the referees.

 

“The officiating was not on our side tonight. At some point, you got to protect your kids,” he said.

 

New Buffalo pulled out to a one-point lead early in the game on free throws made by sophomore Lucas Forker, alongside Elliott Bourne slashing his way around defenders for a lay-up.  However, the Titans quickly went on a 10-point run with help from a slew of turnovers during a period when the Bison seemed overmatched.

 

The first quarter ended with New Buffalo trailing by seven points after Shaw nailed a short jump shot at the buzzer. Michigan Lutheran continued to dominate and went into halftime with a 15-point lead.

 

In the third quarter, New Buffalo appeared to be on the verge of rallying, but every time the Bison had a chance to cut the lead into single digits the Titans seemed to nail a three-point shot or go on a scoring spurt.

 

Forker led the team with 11 points, followed by Shaw with 9 points, and Bourne with 8 points.

 

Tripp said he’s very proud of how the team, with just two seniors, vastly improved seemingly at the snap of the fingers but feels no real sense of accomplishment yet.

 

“I’m bursting with pride. We got great kids, but I can’t accept second. I won’t. I won’t.  That’s just my mentality. We’re going to win it all and we got a couple of years to do it,” he said.