LEXINGTON, Va. - Playing in the consolation game of the Washington & Lee Holiday Classic, the Franklin & Marshall Men's Basketball team defeated Susquehanna 75-67. The Diplomats now have one non-conference matchup remaining before playing 14 straight Centennial Conference games to end the regular season. 

Leading for all 40 minutes of the contest, F&M held the River Hawks to 1-of-5 shooting from the floor in the first four minutes, and jumped out to a 10-3 advantage. After Susquehanna rallied to make it a 14-12 game with under 12 minutes remaining in the half, a quick 7-0 run by the Diplomats put F&M up by nine at the 10-minute mark.

The River Hawks once again responded, this time scoring nine straight points to even the score, but a Logan Satlow bucket followed by back-to-back Kevin Nowoswiat layups gave the Diplomats a 27-21 edge. In front 31-26 with over a minute left to go, F&M outscored Susquehanna 7-1 to take an 11-point lead into the break. 

The River Hawks began the second half by reducing the deficit to six at the 17-minute mark, and eventually made it a 46-42 game with under 14 minutes remaining. However, over the next two minutes, F&M went on a 7-0 run to go back up double-digits. The River Hawks did get to within six again, later trailing 58-52, but were then outscored 9-2 over the next three minutes by the Diplomats, who took their largest of the game at 13.

Down 69-59 with two minutes left to play, Susquehanna used a 7-2 run to make it a five-point contest with 43 seconds remaining. However, the River Hawks failed to make another field goal for the rest of the game, as F&M won its eighth game of the season. 

In what was a season-best performance, John Seidman led the team with 16 points and 10 rebounds, good for his first double-double of the year, and fourth of his career. For the second time in this tournament, F&M outscored its opponent in the paint, this time 42-28. 

Staying in Virginia, the Diplomats will take on Mary Washington on the road on Wednesday, January 3 at 7 p.m.