Franklin, Ind.- Holding off a late offensive surge by Franklin, DePauw came out on top with the help of career highs from
Sam Jacobs,
Brady Kunka, and
Reph Stevenson for a 78-71 road win over the Grizzlies. The Tigers moved to 6-4 overall, while Franklin dropped to 4-6 for the season.
The two teams traded baskets throughout the first half, resulting in nine lead changes and seven ties. The Grizzlies managed to hold onto a lead for under nine minutes of play through the first half; however, in the final three minutes of the half, the Tigers pulled ahead following a dunk by Stevenson. Franklin would regain a 28-27 lead 20 seconds later, but a three-pointer by Jacobs put DePauw back up by two. As time wound down, a flurry of missed shots and offensive rebounds kept the ball on the Tigers' offensive half for the final minute before halftime, with DePauw heading into the locker room with a 35-32 lead at the half.
DePauw went on a 19-8 run in the first five minutes of the second half, quickly expanding its lead to 14, not willing to let the game get out of reach. Throughout the game, Franklin's Ryan Bostic chipped methodically away at the Tigers' lead. Despite DePauw's lead ballooning to as much as 16 at the 10-minute mark, the Grizzlies' Lebron Bennie-Powell hit a three-pointer that jump-started a 21-9 run to bring Franklin within as little as four points. Fortunately for the Tigers' some crucial free throws by
Grant Niego and Jacobs to close out the last 30 seconds of play kept Franklin at bay, resulting in DePauw's 78-71 win.
Jacobs led DePauw with a career-high 26 points, followed by Kunka with his career-high 17 and Niego with 15. Stevenson recorded his second double-double after putting up 12 in the paint and grabbing a career-high 16 rebounds for the afternoon. Kunka would finish the game with nine rebounds in the win. Bostic paced Franklin with 22 points and two assists, and Braden Flanagan added 15.
DePauw shot 49.1 percent from the field to Franklin's 40.3 percent, and the Tigers outscored Grizzlies from the line, 17-14. DePauw had a 44-33 rebounding edge. DePauw dominated in the paint, putting up 40 inside the key while giving up just 26 points in the paint to Franklin.
DePauw hosts Illinois Institute of Technology on Sunday, Dec. 17, in a 3 p.m. tipoff.
