Game Notes

The Franklin & Marshall men's basketball team (17-6, 9-2 Centennial) enters the final week of the regular season tied with Johns Hopkins and Gettysburg atop the Centennial Conference standings following wins over Muhlenberg and Hopkins that moved the Diplomats' current winning streak to eight. They'll conclude the regular season slate on the road with trips to Dickinson on Wednesday and Gettysburg on Saturday. F&M has secured hosting rights to open their Centennial Conference playoff schedule, although results this week will determine whether they earn a bye to the Semifinal or will have to play in the First Round.

Last Week

The Diplomats moved to eight consecutive wins with home wins over Muhlenberg and Johns Hopkins last week. In convincing fashion, the win over the Blue Jays ended a 14-game losing streak.

John Seidman became F&M's 38th player to reach 1,000 career points in their 73-45 win over Muhlenberg on Wednesday night. He scored nine points in the game, and he surpassed 1,000 points on his last basket of the game, a layup in the second half. He became the fourth player with 1,000 points, 500 boards, and 300 assists joining Georgio Milligan '12, Chris Finch '92, and Brian Menet '89. Dylan Cormac led the team offensively with 15 points, while Kevin Nowoswiat recorded a 13-point, ten-rebound double-double. Vakaris Grauslys chipped in five assists and ten points. The Mules kicked off the game on the front foot, scoring the first five points. Grauslys answered back with a three, although this was directly countered by a three from the Mules. The Diplomats used a timeout and leveled the game with five-straight points. The Mules countered with a 6-0 run to lead 14-8 through eight minutes. A nine-point run later put F&M ahead 19-16, while back-to-back Cormac threes put the hosts ahead 27-20. F&M went into the break ahead 29-22. After a contested opening to the second half, F&M used an 8-0 stretch to lead 42-26 through five minutes. A later 9-0 run that featured four points from Cormac and a three from Sam Davison put F&M up 61-36 with six minutes to go. Seidman's 1,000th point came with three minutes to go, as he rebounded his own shot and converted on the second chance. F&M closed out the game on a 7-0 run that saw five points from Riiny Giir and a dunk from Bryson Amos-Whitfield. A full recap is available here. 

Following a competitive first half, F&M used a 13-0 run to open the second half to pull away from Johns Hopkins, winning 66-56 to end a 14-game winning run in the series for the Blue Jays on Senior Day. Nowoswiat led offensively with 22 points, and he shot 9-of-13 (69.2%) on field goals. Grauslys led the team with seven assists and three steals alongside ten points and two blocked shots. Seidman totaled ten rebounds, seven points, and a pair of blocked shots. Sebastien Charles led the team with 11 rebounds from the bench, and Cormac sank 3-of-5 (60.0%) threes en route to an 11-point game. F&M led 5-3 through the opening two minutes, but Hopkins claimed lead the after being fouled on a three-point shot, sinking all three free throws. An 8-1 run put F&M ahead 17-12 with 8:51 to go in the first half. The Diplomats saw the lead shrink to 23-21 by halftime. F&M kept Hopkins to a 22.7% field goal percentage in the first half. A 13-point run in a two minute spell featured threes from Nowoswiat, Grauslys, and Cormac for a 36-21 advantage. The Blue Jays eventually kept pace, staying within 46-32 with eight minutes to go. They closed the gap to ten, but F&M would counter every attempt to reduce the deficit further, leading by 17 with two minutes left. Hopkins withdrew their starts with 1:43 left, and they closed out the game on a 8-1 stretch for a final score of 66-56. F&M shot 52.0% from the field and 58.3% on threes in the second half. In the game, they outrebounded the Blue Jays 42-28. A full recap is available here. 

Last Time vs. Dickinson

Josh Parra reached 1,000 points, as the Diplomats maintained their lead in a narrow 65-63 win over Dickinson last month at the Mayser Center. Parra ended the game with 12 points, two blocked shots, two steals, five rebounds, and two assists. Three other Diplomats reached double digits including Grauslys (17 points, 6 steals), Nowoswiat (13 points, 11 rebounds, fourth double-double of 24-25), and Cormac (12 points, 4-of-7 3PT). Seidman posted a season-high seven assists. 

The Diplomats drew an early lead thanks to two threes from Cormac, and they then countered four points from Dickinson with a 6-0 run to lead 12-4 through six minutes. Dickinson scored five straight and later used a 8-0 run to claim their first lead of the game at 22-21. The teams traded buckets a few teams, with the Red Devils eventually carrying a 29-27 advantage into the halftime break. 

 F&M began the second half with a 15-1 run that included Parra's 1,000th point to lead 40-30 2:45 into the period. The lead stayed around this mark through the opening ten minutes, as Dickinson scored five straight to close the lead to 48-44 with 9:52 to go. The Diplomats scored six of the next eight points, and they maintained this modest gap entering the final minutes, leading 63-60 with 90 seconds to go. Grauslys converted one free throw, followed by a Dickinson layup to get them within two points. Following a missed Diplomats jump shot, Dickinson drew a foul and converted one free throw to trail 64-63. Grauslys was fouled again on the next possession, and he converted 1-of-2 free throws to give F&M a two-point lead with ten seconds to defend it. Dickinson's driving layup in the waning seconds missed the mark, ending the game. A full recap is available here.  

Dickinson Team Preview

The Red Devils (9-14, 4-7 Centennial) begin the week holding onto the final Centennial Conference playoff spot by one game over McDaniel following a key win over the Green Terror on Saturday, 56-53. They also fell at Gettysburg 74-52 in the midweek matchup. 

Cole Cosby and David Petrusev led the team with 14 points each in the win over McDaniel, while Petrusev had eight rebounds. The Red Devils pulled ahead 11-2 through the first eight minutes of the game, and they soon led 20-7 through the first 13 minutes of the contest. Five points from McDaniel closed the gap to ten, and a later 5-0 run from them put them behind 25-17 at the halftime break. They returned from the break with six more unanswered points to close within two. Dickinson found momentum with a 9-3 stretch, leading 34-26 through seven minutes. McDaniel found momentum through the next phase of the game with a 7-2 run that put them three points behind with eight minutes left. They stayed close over the next few minutes and claimed the lead on a three to lead 48-47 with 2:30 to go. A Petrusev dunk swung momentum back in favor of Dickinson who went on a 8-3 run to lead 55-51 before winning 56-53. 

Petrusev led the offense in the 74-52 loss to Gettysburg with 22 points and eight rebounds. The Red Devils led 7-6 through the first four minutes, but Gettysburg took control with a 13-3 run over the next four minutes, leading 19-10. A 7-3 run later on pushed their lead to 36-21, and they closed out the half on a 7-2 run to lead 43-25 at halftime. Dickinson got no closer than 15 points in the second half, eventually falling 74-52.

Petrusev ranks fifth in the Centennial Conference in points per game (16.2), third in field goal percentage (52.6%), and fourth in rebounds per game (6.5). Isaiah Edmond is averaging the third-most assists per game (3.2) and leads the team with 31.6 minutes per game on the court, which is the seventh most among Centennial players.

Last Time vs. Gettysburg

The Diplomats fell just short of victory hosting Gettysburg in a 74-72 defeat last month. The contest featured 11 lead changes and seven ties, and the largest margin was eight points. Grauslys posted a season-high 26 points and led the team with four assists. He sank 9-of-22 field goals and 5-of-6 free throws. Cormac totaled 16 points from the bench, and he was 4-of-4 on threes. Nowoswiat posted 17 points, shooting 6-of-12 on field goals and 4-of-4 on free throws. Parra led the team in both steals (four) and rebounds (eight). Gettysburg led 6-2 following an opening layup from Parra, the Diplomats tied the game at 10-10, but the Bullets controlled the pace for the rest of the half, pulling away by 15-10 and soon 22-15 with 10:15 to go. Back-to-back threes from Cormac and Grauslys reduced the gap, but the Diplomat soon entered halftime behind 38-36.

 The Diplomats scored the first four points of the second half to take their first lead since the opening basket. The teams traded buckets for much of the second half until a 10-2 Diplomats run put them ahead 55-47 with 11:30 remaining. The Bullets called a timeout at the end of the run and got back into the game with a 9-2 run to trail by just a point. F&M maintained a modest lead heading into the final two minutes, when the Bullets converted with two free throws to reclaim the lead at 67-66. Grauslys would convert to free throws a possession later, followed by both teams sinking layups to give Gettysburg a 71-70 lead with 0:51 left. The Diplomats missed a three on their next possession, and the Bullets followed this with a pair of converted free throws. A Grauslys driving layup brought the gap back down to one, and the Bullets hit one of 2 free throws to lead 74-72. F&M missed their next layup with eight seconds left and was forced to foul on the Bullets' defensive rebound. Gettysburg missed both free throws, but Grauslys' long-range three at the buzzer was not accurate. A full recap is available here. 

Gettysburg Team Preview

The Bullets (18-5, 9-2 Centennial) earned two wins last week, defeating Dickinson 74-52 at home on Wednesday before earning a 71-61 away win at Haverford on Saturday. 

After claiming the lead five minutes into the game, Gettysburg never trailed to the finish of a 74-52 win over Dickinson. Carl Schaller led Gettysburg with a performance that featured 20 points, four rebounds, two assists, and one steal. Jordan Stafford also totaled 20 points. The Bullets led 9-7 through a back-and-forth opening five minutes and never surrendered the lead from that point on. At this point, they used an 8-0 run to lead 14-7. They capped the half on a coast-coast driving layup from Schaller to lead 43-25 at the halftime break. Dickinson got no closer than 15 points in the second half, as the lead hovered around 20 points for much of the second half, reaching a high of 27 before a final score of 74-52.

Schaller had a 20-point night in the 71-61 win over Haverford, while Stafford posted 19 points and nine rebounds. Aidan Mess led the Bullets with 11 rebounds alongside eight points. The teams traded baskets to begin the game, but layups from Kosta Radulovic and Stafford put the Bullets ahead 8-4, and Gettysburg yet again held the lead the rest of the way. Two-straight buckets from Stafford pushed the lead to 12-6. Haverford got back within a score at 23-21, but a three from Akim Joseph kicked off a 12-0 run for the Bullets over three minutes. Lorenzo Carrara accounted for seven points during the rally. Gettysburg eventually led 38-29 at halftime. A three from Haverford opened the second half, but Gettysburg countered with six straight points. Haverford got within five points with eight minutes to go, but they were unable to get any closer. 

F&M Among Centennial Conference Sides (As of 2/17/25)

1st in Points Allowed Per Game (61.2) - 8th in DIII
1st in Scoring Margin (10.3) - 44th in DIII
1st in Turnover Margin (2.91)
1st in Assist/Turnover Ratio (1.09)
1st in Steals Per Game (9.00)
2nd in Field Goal Percentage (45.4%)
2nd in Opponent Three-Point Field Goal Percentage (28.5%)
3rd in Assists Per Game (13.30)
3rd in Opponent Field Goal Percentage (40.9%)
5th in Points Per Game (71.5)
5th in Three-Point Field Goal Percentage (33.6%)

F&M Individuals in the Centennial Conference Top 10 (As of 2/17/25)

Points Per Game
2. Kevin Nowoswiat (19.2)

Rebounds Per Game
1. Kevin Nowoswiat (7.1)
7. Josh Parra (6.2)

Field Goal Percentage
4. Kevin Nowoswiat (52.5%)

Free Throw Percentage
9. Vakaris Grauslys (77.5%)

Three-Point Field Goals Per Game
5. Dylan Cormac (2.1)

Assists Per Game
4.  Vakaris Grauslys (3.1)
T5. John Seidman (2.8)
T5. Kevin Nowoswiat (2.8)

Assist/Turnover Ratio
2. Vakaris Grauslys (1.7)

Blocked Shots Per Game
8. Josh Parra (1.0)

Steals Per Game
1. Vakaris Grauslys (2.6) - T-25th in DIII
8. Franklin Jones (1.4)

Minutes Per Game
4. Kevin Nowoswiat (32.8)
6. Vakaris Grauslys (31.9)