Game Notes

With six games remaining in the regular season, the Franklin & Marshall Men's Basketball team (16-3, 11-1) looks to finish strong and boost its NCAA tournament chances. Tied with Johns Hopkins for first place in the Centennial Conference, the Diplomats control their own destiny to clinch the number one seed in the conference tournament should they win the remainder of their contests. Though the Blue Jays own the head-to-head tie-break over F&M, the two sides will meet once more on February 6 where the Diplomats can gain sole possession of the top spot in the standings. 

Last Week

Hosting Gettysburg on Thursday night, F&M completed a season-series sweep of the Bullets with an 81-76 win. Though the Diplomats fell behind 13-4 in the opening minutes of the game, F&M drilled back-to-back three-pointers to cut the deficit to three. Later trailing 26-19, the Diplomats used a 10-4 run to close the gap to one with less than seven minutes til halftime. Four minutes later, Kevin Nowoswiat hit a game-tying layup to spark an 8-2 run to close out the final three minutes of the half. With Gettysburg taking a 47-46 edge in the early stages of the second frame, F&M jumped right back on top with six unanswered points and led for the remainder of the night.  Holding a 61-60 lead three minutes later, the Diplomats exploded for a 10-1 run for its first double-digit lead of the night. After the advantage was brought down to four with less than two minutes remaining in the game, Vakaris Grauslys made three trips to the charity stripe and knocked down all six attempts to seal the win for F&M. Read the full recap here. 

Traveling to McDaniel two days later, the Diplomats survived a double-overtime scare against the Green Terror and came up with an 75-69 win. Trailing by as much as 12 in the first half, F&M used a 9-2 run to get to within five with less than four minutes until the break. In the final two minutes of the frame, the Diplomats scored seven unanswered points to make it a one-point game at the intermission. Down 47-37 in the second half, F&M used an 8-2 run to make it a four-point deficit with just over four minutes remaining in regulation. McDaniel then took a 52-47 edge after which the Diplomats tied the game with five consecutive points, capped off by a Grauslys game-tying three-pointer. With the game heading to overtime, Josh Parra scored F&M's first six points of the stanza and gave the Diplomats a 60-56 lead. However, the Green Terror evened the score at 62-62 and eventually forced a second overtime. In the additional five minutes, F&M broke the game open with a 7-0 run to go up 69-62. Following a three-pointer made on the other end, Omar Nichols made a shot from deep himself before the Diplomats hit three free throws to seal the win. Read the full recap here. 

Last Time vs. Ursinus

Opening conference play against the Bears this season, F&M downed Ursinus 71-59. Inside of the 10-minute mark, the Diplomats held the Bears to 4-of-12 shooting and forced five turnovers as they raced out to a 17-9 lead. Though F&M led by as much as 11 in the first half, Ursinus closed the gap to 38-31 by the break.

With the two teams combining for just three field goals made in the first five minutes of the second period, the Diplomats held a 43-34 advantage with less than 15 minutes to play. After the Bears stormed back to make it a 48-46 game with less than 10 minutes remaining in the game, F&M responded with a 7-0 run to take a 55-46 lead. Later ahead 57-51, the Diplomats scored six consecutive points to go up by 12 and effectively put the game out of reach for Ursinus. Read the full recap here. 

Last Time vs. Muhlenberg

F&M saw four of its starters reach double-figures in scoring as the Diplomats cruised to an 88-67 win over Muhlenberg just over three weeks ago. Going up by as much as 13 in the first half, the Diplomats had their lead cut to as little as one before the break. However, F&M closed out the frame with a 6-2 run to take a 41-36 advantage into the locker room. 

With a 50-46 edge in the second period, the Diplomats scored six unanswered points to go back up by double-digits, and eventually led 61-51 by the 10-minute mark. Five minutes later, F&M doubled the deficit to 20 and put the game out of reach for the Mules. Read the full recap here. 

Ursinus Team Preview

Having fallen to under .500 on the season, Ursinus currently holds the final spot in the conference tournament. After starting 1-0 on the year, the Bears have not been able to attain a winning record, with their most recent loss to No. 24 Johns Hopkins setting them one game back of that mark. 

One of Ursinus's two double-digit scorers on the year, Trevor Wall leads the entire conference and ranks 30th in division III in scoring with 20.5 points per game. The senior has registered double-figure performances in all but one game this season and has notched 11 games of at least 20 points. When the two teams last met, Wall posted 25 points, but was held to 8-of-21 shooting from the floor. As a team, the Bears are shooting a conference-best 46% from the floor, but defensively, have allowed a conference-worst 73.4 points per game.   

Muhlenberg Team Preview

Coming off of a 90-61 route of Washington College, Muhlenberg sits in fifth place of the conference standings. Despite their 7-12 overall record, the Mules are 6-6 in conference play, keeping them in contention for a spot in the conference tournament.  

Boasting five double-figure, the Mules have been led by Giovanni Rubino's 16.9 points per game, good for second in the conference. On the boards, Brandon Goldberg has collected 7.6 rebounds per game, and has tallied five double-doubles on the year. Most recently, Goldberg posted 21 points and 10 rebounds in a dominant effort against Washington College. As a team, the Mules have been the best in the conference at taking care of the ball with just 12.3 turnovers per game. However, they rank at the bottom of the conference in scoring defensive with 73 points per game allowed.