Garnet Wallop Diplomats
SWARTHMORE, Pa. -- Swarthmore put its biggest demon to bed on Saturday afternoon, defeating Franklin & Marshall 79-48 in Tarble Pavilion to end a winless streak that spanned 30 years. Sophomore forward Steve Wolf led the Garnet (3-12, 2-6 CC) with a game-high 21 points and seven rebounds.
The Swarthmore victory marked the 150th career win for head coach Lee Wimberly, the most by any Garnet basketball coach.
The previous Garnet victory over a Diplomat squad occurred in 1975, when Swarthmore took a 74-73 victory in Lamb-Miller Fieldhouse. That is a string of 28 consecutive F&M victories before Saturday afternoon.
It was all Swarthmore right from the tip. The Garnet scored the first six points of the game on layups by sophomores Noam Fliegelmann, Steve Wolf, and Ian McCormick. The Diplomats' Pat Pryzbylowski put F&M on the board with a jumper at 17:28.
Swarthmore extended its lead to as large as 14 in the first half, clipping off a 21-9 run in the final ten minutes. Wolf sank a pair of free throws to make it 35-21 Garnet with 50 seconds remaining in the half.
F&M's Brandon Smith cut the lead to 35-24 with a three-pointer with 36 seconds on the clock but Fliegelman answered back with a triple of his own with two seconds left to send the Garnet into the locker room with a 38-24 lead.
Swarthmore shot a scorching 58% from the field in the first half, led by nine points from Wolf. The Garnet look to advantage of a strong post game, outscoring the Diplomats 20-12 in the paint.
If F&M had any thoughts of making a comeback in the second half, Swarthmore did its best to squash the idea. The Garnet reeled off an 11-2 run in the first four minutes of the second half, pushing its lead to 49-28 following a Wolf layup at 16:17.
Swarthmore's defense tightened up on the other end of the floor, limiting the Diplomats to 28% shooting from the field in the second half - 35% for the game. The Garnet refused to allow F&M to get comfortable at any point on the floor, forcing the Diplomats into just 2-of-16 from behind the three-point line.
The Garnet closed out the game on a 16-3 run capped by sophomore guard J.P. Faunes' first career score, a jumper from the right wing. The Swarthmore defense was key limiting F&M's to a single field goal in the final 8:30 of the game.
The 48 points scored by F&M was the stingiest Swarthmore has been since a 63-48 Garnet victory over Dickinson on January 15, 2003.
The Garnet shooters all benefitted from the efficient offense, hitting 60% from the field while handing out 20 assists as a team. Wolf shot 7-of-11 from the field and 6-of-7 from the free throw line for his 21 points. Freshman Jon Tundel came off the bench to provide a boost for Swarthmore, scoring 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting. McCormick and junior guard Dillon McGrew chipped in 10 points apiece.
Smith led F&M (7-8, 2-6 CC) with 11 points and seven rebounds.
Swarthmore hits the road for its next contest, travelling up to the Main Line on Wednesday, January 18 to take on historic rival Haverford at 8:00 p.m.