HAVERFORD, PA - Haverford College used 18 points off its bench and 20 points off 26 Franklin & Marshall College turnovers to hold off the visiting Diplomats 74-70 in overtime in Centennial Conference men's basketball action.
Trailing 28-18 at halftime, the Fords (3-4, 2-2 Centennial Conference) saw their deficit increase to 17 points as the Diplomats went on a 9-2 run in the first 2:33 of the second half. The Fords cut the lead to 14 points with a three-pointer by guard Johnny Elefterakis at 17:16 before F&M forward Bryan Teschke (Jr., Pittsburgh, PA/Fox Chapel) and Haverford's Dave Nowacki traded lay-ups to set the score at 39-25 at 17:05.
The Diplomats pushed the lead out to 18 points as guard Adam Leonard (So., Muncy, PA/Muncy) and forward Brandon Smith (Sr., Reading, PA/Governor Mifflin) made lay-ups to jump out to a 43-25 margin, but Elefterakis and center Ray Brown made lay-ups to slice the lead to 43-29 with 14:57 left on the game clock.
The lead swayed from 12 to 16 points over the next two minutes before Smith made a lay-up at 12:34 to establish Franklin & Marshall's lead at 51-36.
Haverford then went to work on the margin as forward Mike Fratangelo made a lay-up and Ben McDowell came off the bench to make a lay-up before Smith hit a three-pointer at 11:48 for F&M to keep the Diplomats ahead 54-40.
Elefterakis answered Smith's three-pointer with one of his own to ignite a 10-0 run as Brown, McDowell and Jason Polykoff made lay-ups, while Polykoff added a free throw, as the Fords' defense forced three F&M turnovers to close to within 54-50 with 8:24 left on the clock in regulation.
Point guard Logan Outerbridge (Jr., Glen Rock, NJ/Glen Rock) knocked down a lay-up to put the Diplomats ahead 56-50 at the 7:31 mark, but McDowell made buckets at 6:47, 6:37 and 5:30, respectively, to knot the game at 56-56.
The tie lasted for 21 seconds before center Derek Hines (So., Lancaster, PA/Manheim Township) made a lay-up at 5:09 to put the Diplomats back in front by two points, but Nowacki hit a pair of free throws at 3:56 to retie the game.
Leonard made the front-end of a pair of free throws at 2:58 to put F&M back in front by a point, but Brown hit a jumper to give Haverford a 60-59 lead with 2:45 left on the clock,
Leonard answered with a jumper at 1:57 to give F&M a 61-60 lead, but McDowell hit the front-end of a pair of free throws to knot the game at 61-61.
Both teams had chances to win the game in regulation as the rebound on McDowell's second free throw attempt was collected by Brown who found Elefterakis for a three-point attempt with 40 seconds left. Guard Andrew McCaffrey (Jr., Exeter, NH/Phillips Exeter) collected the defensive rebound on Elefterakis' errant three-pointer as the Diplomats moved down the court and called timeout with 28 seconds left.
With three seconds left on the clock, Hines attempted a jumper which Nowacki rebounded to force overtime.
In the extra five minutes, the teams traded baskets as Nowacki hit a jumper at 4:29, Hines answered at 4:11, Elefterakis made a lay-up at 3:16, Smith drained a pair of free throws at 2:47, Brown made a lay-up at 2:28 and Leonard connected on a three-pointer to set the score at 68-67 in favor of F&M with 2:02 remaining on the clock.
Haverford took the lead for good 17 seconds later as McDowell made a lay-up and Nowacki added a lay-up with 52 seconds left to give the Fords a 71-68 lead. The Fords tacked on three free throws in the game's closing minute and Outerbridge tacked on a lay-up for the Diplomats for the 74-71 final score.
For F&M, Outerbridge led the way making six-of-10 from the field, including three-of-six from beyond the arc, and two-of-two at the free throw line for 17 points with four steals, while Hines chipped in 15 points and nine rebounds. Smith tacked on 13 points and five rebounds, Leonard added 10 points and six rebounds, while Teschke tallied eight points and six rebounds.
McDowell led all scorers in the game as he shot eight-of-10 from the field and two-of-six at the charity stripe for 18 points with three rebounds in 24 minutes off the bench for the Fords. Elefterakis added 14 points, seven assists, five steals and six rebounds, while Brown and Polykoff chipped in 12 points apiece as the Fords improve to 12-58 all-time against Franklin & Marshall.
A key to the game was Haverford's trips to the charity stripe, as the Fords made 15-of-26 free throws, and the team's shooting in overtime as the Fords converted on six-of-eight shots and three-of-six free throws in the extra frame.
Franklin & Marshall (5-3, 2-2 Centennial Conference) will continue the season on December 20 at home versus Alvernia College in non-conference action. Game time is set for 7:30 p.m.
