CINCINATTI, Ohio – The Franklin men's basketball team looked to extend their winning streak on Wednesday (Jan. 15) night, traveling to the Harrington Center for a mid-week showdown with the Mount St. Joseph Lions.

All five starters scored in double figures for the Grizzlies (10-4, 6-1 HCAC), led by 18 points from reigning conference player of the week Payton Mills. Defensively, the Grizzlies kept the Lions (3-11, 1-6 HCAC) in check for most of the second half before holding off a late push from the hosts for an 85-80 win

Franklin's winning streak now sits at seven, the longest for the program since 2008-09 when the Grizzlies rattled off nine straight victories.

The first half was an offensive frenzy that saw both teams shoot better than 55% from the field. Franklin knocked down six of their first seven shots to gain an early 14-6 advantage, and their lead reached double digits for the first time after a pair of Sam Gutierrez free throws that made it 22-12 seven minutes in.

Franklin maintained the double-digit lead until late in the half, when a 16-4 run by The Mount gave the hosts their first lead of the night at 41-39. But Mills connected on a layup late in the half to put Franklin back in front at the intermission by a 44-43 count.

Coming out of the break, the Grizzlies' defense made life hard on a Lion offense that shot better than 65% in the opening 20 minutes. The Grizzlies limited the Lions to just two field goals in the first eight minutes of the period and took a 59-51 lead after a Kale Morris three at the 12:27 mark. After the Lions cut the lead to six, the Grizzlies put their foot on the gas at both ends of the floor, going on a 14-4 run to take their biggest lead of the night at 75-59 with 6:49 to play.

The Mount answered with 11 straight points to get back within five with two minutes to go and would get as close as three before the final buzzer. But their comeback would fall short as Borden Kennedy closed out the game with eight straight points, six coming from the free throw line down the stretch.

Kennedy joined Mills in double figures with 16 points, as did Gutierrez (15 pts), Matt Krause (14 pts) and Morris (13 pts). It marked the sixth time this season that all five starters ended the night in double figures. The Grizzlies shot 51.6% (32-for-62) from the field, going 9-for-20 from three and 12-for-16 from the line.

Krause led the Grizzlies with eight boards as Franklin finished the night with a 31-24 edge on the glass. Gutierrez had a team-high five assists while Mills led all players with a pair of blocked shots.

Franklin closes out their current three-game road trip on Saturday (Jan. 18), when they face off with the Manchester Spartans. Tip-off is set for 2:00 p.m.