HAVERFORD, Pa. - The Haverford College men's basketball team (2-0) downed visiting Immaculata (1-3) by a final score of 78-68 inside Gooding Arena on Thursday evening. Haverford was paced by 19 points from both Gabriel Franklin and Josh Love, while Nicholas Stewart (11 points) and Ryan Trotter (10 points) also tallied in double figures for the Fords. Haverford held a 43-36 rebounding advantage on the night, with Love and Stewart each pulling down seven.
Keith Farmer was a standout for the visitors, posting a double-double effort with 27 points to go with 15 rebounds. Asa Kitchen (12 points) and Brandon McCullough (11 points) also tallied in double figures for the Mighty Macs. Stewart showed some early prowess for Haverford, as the sophomore connected on a three-point play just 30 seconds into the contest. Back-to-Back treys from Nate Torres and Love turned a 12-10 immaculata lead into a 16-12 advantage for the hosts, and Haverford built from there, with Stewart hitting a pair of free throws ahead of a layup from Kitchen to briefly stop the run.
Stewart then connected from deep with 7:57 remaining in the first half, but the Mighty Macs answered yet again, trailing by just one with 6:03 to go. A three-pointer from Love put Haverford back up six with 2:03 remaining in the half, and the lead would hold at six entering the intermission at 34-28 in favor of the Fords.
A 7-2 run for the Mighty Macs briefly gave the visitors the lead early in the second period, but the Fords had an immediate answer with a 7-0 stretch of their own to wrestle back momentum. With 11:14 remaining in the contest, Nick Kerkorian connected on a triple, and Love then finished a layup through traffic to extend the Haverford lead to nine at 58-49. The lead hit 11 following a free-throw line jumper from Harry Johnson.
It was 68-60 Fords with 3:11 to go following a Franklin runner, again prompting the Mighty Macs to call for timeout, and despite some strong play down the stretch from Farmer and Kitchen, Haverford was able to fend off the visitors behind solid free-throw shooting in the closing moments Haverford improves to 2-2 all-time against the Mighty Macs, as the series was renewed for the 2019-20 season after 10 years of dormancy between the two programs that sit just 15 miles apart on Philadelphia's Main Line.
The Fords now return to action on Saturday, making the trek to the New York City area for a 1 p.m. contest with Sarah Lawrence in Bronxville, N.Y.. The Fords will be playing the Gryphons for the third time in program history, and the first time away from the friendly confines of Gooding Arena. The Fords took a 91-79 victory in the last meeting between the two sides in November of 2019.