Colonels knock off Judges

Franks steps up to help Wood advance to final

By David Selig
The Winchester Star

Winchester — As the James Wood High School boys’ basketball team returned to the locker room after Friday night’s first Northwestern District semifinal, junior Tyler Murphy climbed onto senior Cooper Franks’ shoulders.

Franks was certainly an unlikely choice to carry the Colonels into the district final, but he did just that late in the fourth quarter.

Franks went 8 for 8 from the free-throw line and scored all 10 of his points in the final period, as No. 4-seeded Wood upset top-seeded Handley 71-59 at Shirley Gymnasium.

“I can’t shoot. I honestly can’t shoot,” Franks said half-jokingly afterward. “I just really wanted to beat Handley. I’ve never beaten Handley when I’ve been here ... This is one of my dreams.” The Colonels (10-12) needed Franks’ shooting to cling to a six-point lead after starters Mason Smith and Trae Tinsman fouled out in a span of less than 30 seconds with just under three minutes remaining in the game.

Handley (8-9) got within four when Jeremiah Wilson banked in a 3-pointer with 1:10 left, but Franks hit six free throws after that point. The final four came when David Carter was called for a foul and a technical foul with 19 seconds remaining.

Brock Lockhart (18 points, six rebounds) had dived to make a steal when the Judges rolled the ball on an inbounds pass to save time, and Carter leapt in to try to get the ball back when he was called for a shove.

That was one of several hustle plays that helped make the difference after the Colonels were completely outmatched in the teams’ first two meetings of the season.

James Wood had by most accounts its best practice of the season this Wednesday, setting the stage for back-to-back wins over Millbrook and Handley to advance to tonight’s district final against No. 3-seeded Sherando.

“This is a completely different team that played tonight than the one that played Saturday [losing to the Judges 65-44],” Colonels coach Al Smith said. “Last night and tonight, this is the team we were getting to be before all that snow came.”

With losses by Briar Woods and Freedom (South Riding) in Friday night’s Dulles District semifinals, Smith said his team is also assured a berth in the Region II Division 4 tournament.

Wood was in the driver’s seat to win the district regular season title coming out of that week-long break caused by the weather, but the Colonels sputtered in their final two regular season games after it.

It seems that practice Wednesday — which followed a 69-46 loss to Skyline the day before — worked wonders.

“We worked hard,” Lockhart said. “ I’m pretty sure it was the hardest practice we had, and it was physical. The intensity was so high. We all stepped up and just played our hearts out.”

Despite fouling out, Tinsman joined Lockhart and Franks in double-figures, scoring 11, and Chad Potter chipped in 14 points.

Mason Smith finished with just four points, but he had four blocks and two steals.

Wilson scored 13 points to lead Handley, which got 10 points apiece from Carter and Mitch Smith.

But the Judges never had a chance to pull away like they did in the first two meetings. They led 23-20 at the half, but trailed by three heading into the fourth quarter and didn’t get any closer than two.

“We just didn’t come out to play,” said Handley coach Tommy Dixon, whose team had already assured a regional bid in Division 3. “And they did a very good job of controlling the game.”

Momentum seemed like it may swing when the two Colonels fouled out, but Wood hit 14 of 16 free throws as a team in the fourth and 17 of 21 for the game.

Lockhart was 5 for 6 from the line in the final period, but that couldn’t match Franks’ effort.

For Franks, the performance was a long awaited payoff after a season spent mostly on the bench.

“It’s kind of hard. It’s kind of aggravating,” he admitted. “But once you get the opportunity, there’s nothing better.”

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