LANCASTER, Pa. -- Ithaca went on a 10-2, three-minute run, with 5:16 remaining in the contest to pull away and defeat No. 14 Franklin & Marshall 107-97 in the championship game of the 2011 Sponaugle Tournament Monday evening in Lancaster. The Bombers won their seventh game in a row and improved to 9-2 while the Diplomats snapped a six-game run and fell to 8-2.
Trailing by nine, 86-77, F&M put together an 11-4 run spanning two minutes to come with two points, 90-88 at 5:16. Ithaca answered with its decisive run to go ahead 100-90 with 2:16 remaining. The Diplomats scored two straight buckets to come within six, before the Bombers scored seven unanswered points to pull away and take the 107-97 victory.
The contest opened up with three ties in the first three minutes, before Ithaca outscored F&M 12-2 to go up 21-11 at 13:50. The Diplomats slowly chipped away, tying the game at 36 with 3:36 left to play in the first half. The Bombers strung together a 10-3 run to go up seven and took a 51-46 edge into the break.
F&M opened up the second half with six unanswered points to take its first lead, 52-51, of the game. The teams traded baskets over the next three minutes, before F&M took its largest lead of the contest, 62-57, with 15:08 on the clock. Ithaca responded and took a 71-64 advantage with 11:49 remaining, before the Diplomats scored seven unanswered points to tie the game at 71 with 10:37 left. The Bombers answered with a 15-6 run to go up 86-77 at 7:16.
James McNally scored a career-high 36 points and picked up his second double-double of the year with 12 boards. McNally was named to the All-Tournament Team. Georgio Milligan was one-point shy of his career best with 32 points. Hayk Gyochyan and Brandon Beckford added seven apiece.
Ithaca had all five starters score in double figures. Chris Cruz-Rivas picked up a double-double with 27 points and 12 boards. Andrei Oztemel netted 25, shooting 6-for-9 from the behind the arc. Phil Barera had 16 while Sean Rossi and Jordan Marcus finished with 15 and 14 points respectively.
Franklin & Marshall returns to court on Thursday when the Diplomats host Lancaster Bible at 6:00 p.m.
ITHACA 107, FRANKLIN & MARSHALL 97
ITHACA (9-2)
CRUZ-RIVAS, Chris 9-18 6-8 27; OZTEMEL, Andrei 7-11 5-5 25; BARERA, Phil 7-10 2-2 16; ROSSI, Sean 4-8 7-8 15; MARCUS, Jordan 5-10 2-2 14; GRIER, Miles 3-5 1-3 7; JORDAN, Christian 1-3 0-0 2; WIGHTMAN, Sinjin 0-1 1-3 1. Totals 36-66 24-31 107.
FRANKLIN & MARSHALL (8-2)
James McNally 15-24 6-8 36; Georgio Milligan 13-25 4-8 32; Steve Tolliver 4-11 0-0 9; Hayk Gyokchyan 3-3 1-4 7; Brandon Beckford 3-11 0-0 7; Mike Baker 1-5 2-2 4; Max Brewer 0-4 2-2 2; Dave Balderston 0-0 0-0 0; Jon Salandra 0-0 0-0 0; Ty Savastio 0-1 0-0 0; Ed Early 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 39-84 15-24 97.
Ithaca........................ 51 56 - 107
Franklin & Marshall........... 46 51 - 97
3-point goals--Ithaca 11-24 (OZTEMEL, Andrei 6-9; CRUZ-RIVAS, Chris 3-8; MARCUS, Jordan 2-5; JORDAN, Christian 0-1; ROSSI, Sean 0-1), Franklin & Marshall 4-17 (Georgio Milligan 2-5; Steve Tolliver 1-4; Brandon Beckford 1-5; Max Brewer 0-3).
Fouled out--Ithaca-None, Franklin & Marshall-None.
Rebounds--Ithaca 38 (CRUZ-RIVAS, Chris 12), Franklin & Marshall 36 (James McNally 12).
Assists--Ithaca 12 (ROSSI, Sean 9), Franklin & Marshall 11 (Georgio Milligan 6).
Total fouls--Ithaca 20, Franklin & Marshall 22.
Technical fouls--Ithaca-None, Franklin & Marshall-None. A-823
All-Tournament Team: Andrei Oztemel, IC; James McNally, F&M
Lester Prosper, OW; Paul Reynolds, WC
MVP: Sean Rossi, Ithaca