LANCASTER, PA – The ninth-ranked Johns Hopkins men's basketball team topped host Franklin & Marshall, 71-59, Tuesday night in Centennial Conference action.
 
Hopkins improves to 19-3 overall and 13-2 in the conference while pushing its win streak to nine. Franklin & Marshall falls to 10-12 on the season and 5-10 in the CC.
 
The Diplomats grabbed an early 7-3 lead before a Carson James layup sparked a 19-2 Blue Jay run. Six different players scored during the run, which spanned six minutes. Graduate student Tom Quarry punctuated the run with a three-pointer to stake Hopkins to a 22-9 lead with 10:56 to play in the half. The teams traded buckets over the remainder of the half and JHU took a 36-25 lead into break.
 
Franklin & Marshall trimmed the deficit to seven less than two minutes into the second. Five straight points from senior Lincoln Yeutter pushed Hopkins' lead to 41-29 with 14:41 on the clock. The Dips answered with five quick points to cut the lead back to seven just two minutes later. The Blue Jays came right back with six unanswered points, including a Sidney Thybulle dunk, to go up 47-34.
 
Omar Nichols hit from downtown to ignite a 6-1 spurt that pulled the home team back within eight at the 8:42-mark. Senior Conor Gibson halted the Dips' spurt when he drained a corner three that sparked a 11-5 run that pushed the Jays' lead to 59-45. The run spanned four minutes and was capped by a John Windley triple that put JHU up 59-45. The teams went back-and-forth over the final four-and-a half minutes as the Blue Jays took home the 12-point victory.
 
Sophomore Brian Johansson led Hopkins with 14 points and nine rebounds. Quarry added 13 points, while Yeutter scored 11 and grabbed four steals. Nichols and Kevin Nowoswiat scored 15 points each to pace Franklin & Marshall. Vakaris Grauslys added 10 points and Josh Parra had a team-best six rebounds.
 
Hopkins returns to action on Saturday, February 11 against Dickinson for Senior Day. Tip-off for the Centennial Conference contest is slated for 6:00 pm at Goldfarb Gym.
 
Notes: With the win, combined with an Ursinus' loss, Hopkins secured a top-two seed and a first-round bye in the upcoming Centennial Conference Tournament.