Down a couple of players on Saturday, including its second-leading scorer, Franklin men's basketball found a way to get the job done.

Led by a career-high 28 points from freshman Rohan Pearson, the Grizzlies built an early lead with some hot outside shooting and held the fort through a high-scoring second half for a 95-83 win over Bluffton at the Spurlock Center.

With the victory, Franklin (13-7, 9-4 HCAC) pushed itself into a five-way tie atop the conference standings.

"What a game!" Franklin coach Chris Hamilton said. "Every game in this league challenges you, and these guys met the challenge head on. Momentum swings, foul trouble, makes and misses — everyone answered the call today to do whatever it takes to win."

The Griz took the lead for keeps at 11-10 on a 3-pointer by LeBron Bennie-Powell at the 14:34 mark of the first half. Pearson and Cooper Matthews added 3s as the Grizzlies continued pulling away, eventually going up 36-20 with 7:39 left before the break and taking a 45-33 lead into the locker room.

Franklin hit six 3-pointers during the first half, including a scorching 5 of 6 from the left corner.

The Beavers refused to go away quietly, though. After an Avery Sanders bucket stretched the Griz lead to 68-54 with 12:06 remaining in the game, the visitors repeatedly attacked the basket and whittled the deficit to four on a pair of occasions, the last at 74-70 with 6:30 on the clock. But the home team maintained control, using two Dylan Beverly layups and four Cooper Matthews free throws to rebuild a 10-point cushion with 4:11 left.

Bluffton never got closer than nine again during a second half that finished up deadlocked at 50-50.

Matthews finished the day with 17 points and team-high seven rebounds. Beverly totaled 16 points, five assists and three blocked shots, while Bennie-Powell scored 15.

Franklin will be on the road this coming Wednesday (Feb. 4, 7:30 p.m.) at fellow first-place team Mount St. Joseph.