ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Five players scored in double-figures as Franklin & Marshall men's basketball team picked up a 93-78 victory in an exhibition contest with Tsinghua University from the People's Republic of China on the second day of the 27th Annual Lopata Classic hosted by Washington University on Saturday afternoon.
The first half was a battle, with seven lead changes and six ties as both team settled in. F&M took over for good with an 11-2 run spanning over three minutes to take a 37-28 edge at 5:33. Tsinghua came within five points at 3:34, before the Diplomats finished the half with a 45-37 advantage going into the break.
Tsinghua opened up the second half on a 9-5 run to come within four points, 50-46, at 16:49. F&M answered, holding at least a six-point lead over the next seven minutes. With a 65-59 edge, the Diplomats put together a 14-5 run to take a commanding 79-64 lead at 5:13.
James McNally turned in a double-double with a team-high 20 points and game-high 12 rebounds. McNally shot 8-for-17 from the field and went 4-for-4 from the line. Brandon Beckford chipped in 17 while Georgio Milligan had 15 points. Mike Baker and Jon Salandra both finished with 10 points.
Haolong Qi scored a game-high 25 points for Tsinghua. Qi went 10-for-15 from floor and shot 5-for-9 from behind the arc. Yi Hao added 11 points.
The Diplomats held a 42-32 advantage on glass and forced 24 turnovers.
Franklin & Marshall starts a two-game home stand next week to close out the 2010 portion of its schedule. The Diplomats face Gettysburg on Wednesday at 8 p.m. and take on Haverford on Saturday at 4:00 p.m.
FRANKLIN & MARSHALL 93, TSINGHUA UNIVERSITY 78
TSINGHUA UNIVERSITY
Haolong Qi 10-15 0-0 25; Yi Hao 4-8 3-4 11; Xiadong Zhu 3-6 0-0 9; Yilong Li 4-4 0-0 8; Zheng Wei 2-5 4-5 8; Lingxu Zeng 3-5 0-0 6; Zhonghao Sun 3-3 0-0 6; Hegshan Zhang 1-1 1-2 3; Shan Jin 1-3 0-0 2; Zipei Yang 0-1 0-0 0; Tian Wu 0-3 0-0 0. Totals 31-54 8-11 78.
FRANKLIN & MARSHALL
James McNally 8-17 4-4 20; Brandon Beckford 6-13 2-2 17; Georgio Milligan 6-15 2-3 15; Jon Salandra 3-6 4-6 10; Mike Baker 5-9 0-0 10; Steve Tolliver 3-8 0-0 8; Max Brewer 1-3 2-3 5; Ty Savastio 2-2 0-0 4; Brett McCormick 0-0 2-2 2; Dave Balderston 1-2 0-0 2; Kevin Henry 0-1 0-0 0; Hayk Gyokchyan 0-5 0-0 0; Nick Mraz 0-0 0-0 0; Ed Early 0-0 0-0 0; Kevin Hines 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 35-82 16-20 93.
Tsinghua University........... 37 41 - 78
Franklin & Marshall........... 45 48 - 93
3-point goals--Tsinghua University 8-19 (Haolong Qi 5-9; Xiadong Zhu 3-6; Lingxu Zeng 0-1; Shan Jin 0-1; Zipei Yang 0-1; Tian Wu 0-1), Franklin & Marshall 7-18 (Brandon Beckford 3-7; Steve Tolliver 2-4; Georgio Milligan 1-3; Max Brewer 1-3; Mike Baker 0-1).
Fouled out--Tsinghua University-Zhonghao Sun, Franklin & Marshall-None.
Rebounds--Tsinghua University 32 (Yi Hao 7), Franklin & Marshall 42 (James McNally 12).
Assists--Tsinghua University 21 (Hegshan Zhang 4), Franklin & Marshall 26 (Georgio Milligan 7; Max Brewer 7).
Total fouls--Tsinghua University 19, Franklin & Marshall 11.
Technical fouls--Tsinghua University-None, Franklin & Marshall-None.