Box Score | Kupa's Game-Winner

LANCASTER, Pa. – Justin Kupa's jumper as time expired in overtime gave Franklin & Marshall a 74-72 win over Muhlenberg in Centennial Conference (CC) action Saturday afternoon. The Diplomats improved to 7-8, 3-5 CC with the win, while the Mules dropped to 11-4, 4-4 CC. Click here to see Kupa's game-winner.

Muhlenberg took an early 8-4 lead two minutes into the game, before the Diplomats netted five straight for a 9-8 advantage at 16:37. The Mules outscored F&M 8-4 over the next five minutes to go ahead three, 16-13, but the Diplomats countered with a 12-4 run led by Bo Williams and took a six-point lead, 25-19, with 7:27 left in the half. Two foul shots by Justin Kupa made it 27-21, before the Mules scored eight straight and retook the lead, 29-27, at 2:56. The teams traded baskets down the stretch with the Mules holding onto a 33-30 lead at the break. 

Kupa had 11 points in the opening frame, Brian Hines netted nine and Williams chipped in eight for the Diplomats. 

The Mules led 38-33 at 18:17 in the second and held a four-point lead, 41-37, at 15:13 before the Diplomats tied the game a minute later at 43-43. Muhlenberg went ahead 48-45 with 13:14 remaining and F&M countered with 9-0 run, with Kupa and Hines netting four each, for a six-point, 54-48, with a little less than nine minutes to play. The teams traded points over the next few minutes with F&M clinging to a 63-58 lead at 2:15, but the Mules closed out the game with five straight to send the game into overtime. 

The opening minutes of overtime were uneventful as both teams struggled to score. Kupa hit a jumper at 2:23 to put F&M ahead 65-63, and a Hines layup at 1:01 tied the game at 69-69. Mike Rice's triple with 24 ticks on the clock put F&M up three, but the Mules answered on their next possession with a three of their own to tie the game at 72-72, setting up Kupa's game-winner. 

Justin Kupa ended with a career-high 31 points, hitting 10-of-20 from the floor, and 9-of-11 from the line. Brian Hines ended with a double-double, netting 21 points while pulling down 11 boards and Les Thomas along with Bo Williams both finished with eight points. 

F&M outshot Muhlenberg 48%-43% and held a 40-32 edge on the glass. 

The Diplomats hit the road for two games next week, traveling to Haverford on Wednesday for an 8:00 p.m. contest, before ending the week at Ursinus for a 3:00 p.m. tip.