BALTIMORE, MD – Four Blue Jays scored in double figures and the seventh-ranked Johns Hopkins men's basketball team beat Muhlenberg, 85-51, to advance to the Centennial Conference Championship for the fifth straight year.
 
It was close from the tip as the lead changed hands six times and neither team led by more than four points. Hopkins found itself down 16-15 midway through the first half after a Giovanni Rubino bucket in the paint. Sophomore John Windley answered with a layup on the other end to spark a 15-1 run that spanned more than seven minutes. Five different Blue Jays scored during the run that saw Hopkins grab a 30-17 lead with 3:23 to go. Senior Lincoln Yeutter punctuated the run with a nothing-but-net three-pointer from the wing.
 
Three straight points from Dan Gaines pulled the Mules back within 10. But the Blue Jays answered with a pair of Jayden Nixon free throws and buckets from Will Sykes and Carson James to take a 36-20 lead into the half.
 
Hopkins picked up right where it left off at the half, outscoring Muhlenberg 18-3 in the opening six-and-a-half minutes. Five Blue Jays scored during the run, that was fueled by three-pointers from Windley and sophomore Brian Johansson and saw JHU take a 50-23 lead. The Blue Jays would push their lead to 30 after a Sidney Thybulle layup and two Windley free throws with 12:33 to play in the game.
 
Gaines then hit a three-pointer to spark a 12-3 Mules' run that saw the lead trimmed to 21 at the 7:50-mark. Jayson Williams-Johnson book-ended the run with a triple of his own to make it a 57-36 game. Hopkins answered with a 10-2 run, in just 84 seconds, to put the game out of reach. James got things going with a step-back three in front of the Blue Jay bench. A Nixon dunk capped the run and staked Hopkins to a 67-38 lead with 6:02 on the clock. Muhlenberg would get no closer than 25 for the remainder of the game.
 
James led the Blue Jays with 15 points, while handing out five assists. Windley finished with 14 points, four rebounds and three assists. Nixon added 13 points and seven boards and Thybulle chipped in 10 points, five rebounds and two blocks. Rubino paced the Mules with 15 points, while Luke Gordos finished 12 points and five boards. Gaines added 11 points and four rebounds.
 
Hopkins shot 49.2 percent from the field, while holding Muhlenberg to 33.9, including 14.3 percent from three. The Blue Jays also dominated on the boards, with a 50-30 advantage. The 85 points are the second most by Hopkins in a Centennial Conference Tournament game.
 
Hopkins will take on 15^th-ranked Swarthmore in the Centennial title game on Sunday, February 26. Tip-off at Goldfarb Gym is scheduled for 3:00 pm.
 
Notes: Thybulle moved into a tie for 12^th in program history with 74 career blocks.