ANNVILLE, Pa. – The Haverford College men's basketball team (1-0) played its first game in 636 days, earning an 84-69 victory against Lebanon Valley on Saturday afternoon. The Fords broke Haverford's single-game record for three-pointers made after a barrage of shots from behind the arc in the first half.
Seven players knocked down a three-pointer for the Fords as sophomore Gabe Franklin's 23 points led the squad. Two other players for Haverford would reach double figures on the afternoon. Nicholas Stewart finished with 19 points, and freshman Harry Johnson added 11 points in his collegiate debut. Senior Stephen Flanders did a lot of the dirty work, leading the team in rebounds with nine. LVC was led by 18 points from Collin Jones as the home team had four players reach double figures.
There was a clear sign of rust in the opening minutes of the contest. Haverford took a few minutes to get into the game's flow as their first few attempts were off the mark. However, Lebanon Valley looked to be the better team in the first five minutes when they jumped out to a 10-3 lead. The Fords would then get into a good rhythm as four of their first five made shots came from beyond the arc.
Johnson was injected into the game early and proved to be the spark the Fords needed to get going. Johnson knocked down a three with 12:56 left to play in the first half and then, after a couple of shifty moves in the paint, added a layup two minutes later. After a couple of lead changes and back and forth action from both teams, Haverford found themselves down 19-18 at the midway point of the first half. However, it would be the last time the team trailed in the game, as Charlie Mamlin hit a three from the top of the key.
The Fords were hot from the three-point line for the rest of the half. Franklin and Mamlin each enjoyed life behind the arc, trading three-pointers between the two in a fast-paced game. Mamlin finished the game with nine points, with each of his three-pointers coming in the first half. Franklin was the leading scorer for the Fords at the end of the first half with 11 points.
Haverford jumped out to a 19 point lead, their biggest advantage of the game, with three minutes left to play in the half. Everything was clicking for the Fords after a shaky start. At the halftime break, the team led 49-34. The Fords shot 54 percent from the field and were an efficient 57 percent (12-21) from beyond the arc. The 21 points from the bench were vital for the Fords to gain control of the game and not allow the Dutchmen to feel they were in the game.
The Fords cooled off dramatically in the second, sitting only four threes away from breaking the program record for threes in a game. The team started the half 0-7 from the three-point line and allowed LVC to claw its way back into the game. The Dutchmen got into their rhythm and knocked down key shots to keep the game interesting.
LVC's Jones seemed to be all over the court as he grabbed rebounds and pushed the game's pace. Although Jones was the spark, Jevon Griffin's three-pointer cut the Fords' lead to just seven.
Moments later, Payton Lewis' layup cut Haverford's lead to just five. After that bucket, the game started to feel scrappy as the Fords looked for answers to slow down key players for the Dutchmen. Franklin would answer the call after knocking down a pair of free throws with five minutes left to play, but the dagger would come after he made a three-pointer with the shot clock winding down to put Haverford up 72-58.
LVC did their best to climb back into the game once more, but the Fords kept everything under control. Nicolas Stewart hit a three-pointer with 2:38 left on the clock. Stewart was the second-leading scorer of the contest, finishing with 19 points on an efficient 7-12 shooting.
At this moment, Haverford had tied the record for making threes in a game. Franklin's three with two minutes left to play would be the one to break the school record as it was Haverford's sixteenth three-pointer of the contest. The previous record was 15 in a game, a mark set against Ursinus on January 29, 2020.
The Fords finished with 26 points off the bench, which was not enough to outscore the Dutchmen bench, as that unit scored 28 points. Nate Torres was vital in the contest with nine points, along with Ryan Trotter, who added seven. Nick Kerkorian finished with six points after making a three-pointer and knocking down three from the charity stripe.
It was a dominating performance from the Fords in their first competitive game in nearly two years, and they proved to be in no shortage of shooters. The team outrebounded LVC 29-22 and finished the game with 18 assists.
Men's basketball next plays their first home game Thursday, November 11, welcoming Immaculata to campus in an 8 p.m. scheduled tip. The game will be part of a doubleheader with the women's team battling the Mighty Macs starting at 6 p.m.