LANCASTER, PA – Johns Hopkins shot better than 50 percent from the field en route to a 79-61 win over host Franklin & Marshall on Tuesday night in Centennial Conference action. The Blue Jays win their second straight as they improve to 3-2 overall and 2-0 in the conference, while the Diplomats slip to 2-3 overall and 1-1 in the CC. It is the Blue Jays' largest margin of victory in Lancaster in the series history, besting the mark of 15 set on February 21, 1972. The win also snaps a six-game losing streak in the series.

Coming out of the half trailing by two, Terrel Phelps hit a bucket in the paint to pull the Diplomats even at 34 apiece. Junior George Bugarinovic answered with an old-fashioned three-point play on the other end to put the Blue Jays back on top and ignite an 11-1 run. Junior Jimmy Hammer and senior Daniel Corbett capped the run with back-to-back three-pointers, forcing a Franklin & Marshall timeout at 16:08 with Hopkins leading 45-35.

The Diplomats battled back, using a Cedric Moune dunk to kick start a 7-2 burst that saw the Dips cut the Blue Jays' lead to two with 14:20 to go in the game. Morgan Lee fueled the run with five straight points, punctuated by a three-point play that made it a 47-42 game. Hopkins answered and answered emphatically, sophomore Gene Williams hit a three-pointer, followed by a Bugarinovic layup and the lead was back to 10. But that was just the beginning of a 19-5 Blue Jays' run that saw the visitors take a 66-47 lead.

Seven different players scored while the Blue Jays forced four missed layups and three turnovers on defense during the seven-minute run. Franklin & Marshall got as close as 13 over the final seven minutes, but Hopkins continued to convert on its possessions as the Blue Jays eventually won by 18.

Hopkins struggled out of the gate as Franklin & Marshall stormed out to a 17-5 lead by the 12-minute mark. A layup by sophomore Matt Billups followed by a steal and layup by classmate Austin Vasiliadis got the Blue Jays back in it and ignited a 20-5 run. Hammer bookended a free throw by Jon Salandra and Hopkins had its first lead of the game, 25-24, with 4:49 to go in the half. F&M quickly retook the lead on a bucket in the paint by Matt Porter and then pushed it to three with a Moune layup. The teams traded free throws before a Corbett triple tied the game at 30 apiece with 1:47 on the clock.

Porter gave the Diplomats back the lead with a layup just 20 seconds later, but junior Omar Randall would get back-to-back layups to end the half and give Hopkins a 34-32 lead at the break. After missing eight of their first 10 shots, the Blue Jays went 12-of-16 from the field in the final 12 minutes of the half.

Bugarinovic led all scorers with a season-high 18 points, going 6-of-8 from the field and 6-of-8 from the free throw line. He also grabbed six boards and had a pair of steals in 26 minutes. Hammer finished with 11 points, to go with two helpers and two steals. Billups and Randall both punched up career highs, finishing with 10 and nine, respectively. Salanda, Moune and Porter led the Diplomats with 14 points apiece and Lee added 10.

Hopkins returns to action on Friday, November 29 as the Blue Jays take on the Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Stags in the Wells Classic. Tip-off from Pomona-Pitzer College is set for 5:00 pm PST.