AURORA, Ill. – The Franklin College men's basketball team hit the road for the first time this season on Saturday (Nov. 20) night, traveling north to take on the Spartans of Aurora University.

All five starters scored in double figures for the Grizzlies (1-1), as they rode a massive second half performance to an 89-79 win over the host Spartans (1-3). Franklin knocked down a season-high 13 three-pointers in the win, the most in a game by any Franklin team since Jan. 4, 2020 when they hit 15 in a win over Defiance. 

How it Happened
Back-to-back threes from Matt Krause gave the Grizzlies a 10-4 lead with 13:51 to play in the opening half, but Aurora responded with a 7-0 run to take their first lead of the night. Both offenses would control the play the rest of the half before the Spartans held their biggest lead of the game at 38-31 with a minute left.

Ty Wright gave the Grizzlies a little momentum heading into the half, knocking down a big three with seconds left before the buzzer to cut the deficit to 38-34 heading into the locker room.

Franklin opened the second half with a 10-3 run; with TJ Deere draining consecutive triples to put Franklin back in front 44-41 just two minutes into the half. The game saw six more lead changes and nine ties and sat deadlocked at 67 with 7:38 to go following an Aurora bucket.

The Grizzlies took control of the game over the next two minutes with a 9-2 run that gave them the lead for good. Franklin's lead grew to as many as 12 before the final buzzer sounded.

Inside the Box Score
-All five Franklin starters recorded double-digit point totals in the game. Wright set career highs with 21 points and 14 rebounds for his first career double-double. Ryan Wiggins also recorded the first double-double of his career with 16 points and 16 rebounds.
-Mitch O'Mara added 17 points, going a perfect 4-for-4 from the floor and 8-for-10 at the line. Krause added 15 and Deere chipped in with 12 for FC.
-Franklin shot 43.9% (29-for-66) from the floor and 69.2% (18-for-26) from the free throw line.
-The Grizzlies dominated the game on the glass, grabbing 53 rebounds to 30 for the Spartans. It was the first time since Dec. 17, 2019 that the Grizzlies pulled down more than 50 boards in a contest.

Up Next
The Grizzlies head to Danville, Ky. on Tuesday (Nov. 23) night to take on the Centre Colonels. Tip-off is set for 7:30 p.m.