The New Bloomfield boys are still working through early-season issues.
The Wildcats lost 75-35 to Vienna on Tuesday in the first round of the Tipton Tournament after being limited to its second single-digit first quarter in three games and losing for the third time by at 20 points.
Senior Trevor Jordan was New Bloomfield's leading scorer for the second time in three games, collecting 11 points against an Eagles team that was coming off two straight wins in which they limited Salem and Chamois to a combined 47 points.
Vienna (3-1) jumped ahead considerably early with a 29-9 first quarter and then led 43-20 at halftime. New Bloomfield (0-3) had its best quarter in the fourth, when it outscored Vienna 8-9, but it was too late by that point.
New Bloomfield had played Vienna four times before - all in tournament settings - losing three of the four games, winning the 2017 meeting in the Tipton Tournament 72-49 and losing the most recent one in 2019 in the Tipton event 55-36.
Most of the 14-10 Vienna team that finished second in its district tournament last season returned for this year's campaign. The Eagles ran out their leading scorer from a season ago Bayrd Vanscoy, who averaged 14.6 points per game, and their leading rebounder Trey Snodgrass, who averaged 7.1 boards per game while scoring 12.3 on average. Vienna lost second-leading scorer Nathan Kleffner to graduation, who averaged 12.4 points per game last season.
Head coach Zach Buscher said it is only the third game, and the Wildcats still have time to become more competitive, starting with their consolation bracket matchup at 4 p.m. Thursday against the hosting Tipton (0-1). The Cardinals lost their first-round game against the Helias junior varsity team 68-43 and have won two consecutive meetings with New Bloomfield, with the latest one happening in the 2020 Tipton Tournament in a 69-59 decision.
"It's a long season, so I'm optimistic that we will improve," Buscher said. "We have to execute and do the small things correctly to right the ship. We will get there."