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ANNVILLE, PA - Lebanon Valley's Jon David Byers scored 12 points in overtime as the Dutchmen came back from a 10 point deficit with 5:04 left in regulation to upset visiting Franklin & Marshall College (13-3, 3-1 Centennial Conference), 62-56. For F&M the loss was their second in as many games as the Diplomats have now dropped three-of-four since beginning the season 12-0. Overall, Byers would finish the game with 17 points, including a pair of three-pointers and six foul shots in overtime. The game would be one of poor shooting as the teams combined to convert only 37-of-116 field goal attempts. Franklin & Marshall, which made 19-of-63 shots, would shoot six-of-20 from three-point range and 12-of-20 at the foul line for the game. With 5:04 left to play, and F&M clinging to a 10-point lead following a three-pointer by Duran Searles (So., Camden, NJ/Peddie School) and lay-up by Larry Fain (Sr., Crum Lynne, PA/Chester), Lebanon Valley would go to work on the Diplomats lead. Darren Pugh hit a layup with 4:38 left, and Byers drilled a three pointer with 2:52 ticks left on the clock before F&M forward Cas Thomas (Sr., Langhorne, PA/Neshaminy) put in a lay-up to push the lead back to seven at 42-35 with 2:30 left. F&M would call a timeout, but LVC would go on a 7-0 run out of the break behind a lay-up by John Sharkey and a three-pointer by Evan Harlor. With 1:09 left to play, Byers would be fouled by Searles and convert both free throws for a 42-42 tie to force overtime. In OT, Sharkey would hits two-of-two foul shots with 4:43 to play to start an 8-0 Lebanon Valley run for a 50-42 lead with 2:04 left. F&M's Brandon Jones (So., Philadelphia, PA/Germantown Friends) would hit a lay-up with 1:55 left to cut the lead to six, but Byers drained his second three-pointer of overtime to push the lead back to nine with 1:35 left. Following a pair of free throws by Pugh for an 11-point lead, forward Alex Kraft (Sr., Lansdale, PA/Lansdale Catholic) swished the first of his three three-pointers in overtime to cut the lead back to eight. Byers hit both ends of a one-and-one with 1:00 to go, as Kraft answered seven seconds later with another three to slice the lead to seven with :53 seconds remaining. Eight seconds later, Byers made the first but missed the second of his free-throws as Kraft sprinted down the court to connect on his third three-pointer with 22 seconds left. One second later, following an F&M foul, Byers made one-of-two free-throws as the Dutchmen got the ball back in the hands of Jay Leader with nine seconds remaining. Leader made one-of-two shots with nine seconds left, but F&M would fire back as Fain drilled his team's fourth three-pointer in one minute to cut the lead to four with seven ticks left on the clock. LVC's Byers made both free throws following a foul for the 62-56 final. F&M was led by the play of Kraft who finished with 13 points off a five-of-13 shooting performance and corralled a team high seven rebounds. Thomas chipped in 10 points and Fain notched 10 as the Diplomats suffered their worst shooting performance of the year. Byers led LVC, which improves to 10-4, with 17 points, while Pugh added 16 points and a game high nine boards for the Dutchmen. Ironically, F&M's season is eerily similar to the one experienced by the 1999-2000 Diplomats who started the year 9-1 before suffering four losses immediately following the Rotary Tip-Off the New Year Tournament, including three straight games. F&M would rally to win 12 straight games, claim the Centennial Conference title and advance to their fourth Final Four appearance in school history following a 75-61 win over Dickinson College on January 22 in the Mayser Center. F&M will look to repeat their turnaround win against the Red Devils on Saturday as the Diplomats will host Dickinson in a women/men's double-header in the Mayser Center. Opening tip for the women's game is set for 2:00 p.m., with the men's contest immediately following at 4:00 p.m. Admission is free.
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