NEWARK, N.J. - The game tipped off at the Golden Dome and it didn't take long for Franklin & Marshall to make their presence felt. With a quick 7-0 run in the opening minutes, the Diplomats set the tone early. Even though Rutgers-Newark rallied to take the lead at 11-9 with some timely shots, the Diplomats regained control and carried a lead into halftime. At the break, Franklin & Marshall held a 32-27 advantage.  

In the second half, the Diplomats extended their margin steadily. With strong contributions across the roster, they pushed ahead by as many as nine points when the score reached 45-36 with roughly 13 minutes remaining. Rutgers-Newark made some late runs and threatened to tighten the gap, but each time Franklin & Marshall responded with key buckets and solid rebounds, maintaining the cushion. The Scarlet Raiders fought valiantly but couldn't flip the momentum the rest of the way. The final score: 66-57 in favor of Franklin & Marshall.  

Tournament MVP Vakaris Grauslys paced the Diplomats with 20 points on 5-of-14 shooting and 9-of-10 from the free throw line. Meanwhile, Rutgers-Newark's Ayden Brown led his team with 18 points on an efficient 7-of-10 shooting, and Raheem Murray chipped in 10 points, but the Raiders couldn't muster enough stops or sustained offense to overcome the gap.  

John K. Adams Champions: Franklin & Marshall 

Tournament MVP: Vakaris Grauslys,  Franklin & Marshall 

All-Tournament Team
Franklin Jones, Franklin & Marshall 
Ayden Brown, Rutgers-Newark
Jeremy Rodriguez , Pitt-Bradford 
Josiah King, St. Elizabeth 

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