SWARTHMORE, Pa.  - The Swarthmore College men's basketball team opened its Centennial Conference slate with a hard-fought victory over Dickinson College, 88-78, on Saturday evening. The Garnet outlasted the Red Devils with an excellent second half, outscoring their opponent by 11 points. 

Jonathan Stump had the best game of his career, tallying a career-high 19 points on 8-of-12 shooting. The Red Devils defense had no answer to the junior big man, who dominated in the offensive paint while connecting on 2-of-3 from long range. 

Zander Jimenez contributed 16 points and seven rebounds, while Eddie Paquette had 11 points and eight rebounds in a gritty effort. Devin Burger was the fourth Garnet in double figures, tallying 10 points. 

HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Garnet took a 7-3 lead after Jimenez knocked down a triple for his fifth point of the opening two minutes. The Red Devils came back to even the score until Nyle Coleman buried a triple to create a two-point edge, 12-10.

- Dickinson took a four-point lead after hitting from three with 8:59 remaining. The Garnet countered with five-unanswered, which was kickstarted by a Caleb Aurelien triple. Burger then added a couple free throws to regain the lead for Swarthmore, 23-22.

- The Garnet put together a quick 6-0 run to build a five-point cushion. However, the Red Devils ended the half on an 8-2 stretch to take a slim lead into the locker room, 32-31. 

- Swarthmore raced out to a 12-2 run to take control of the game in the second half. Burger broke in the new half with consecutive three-pointers, while Jimenez followed with five-straight points and Stump closed the stretch with a baby hook, making it 43-34.

- After a Dickinson three slowed momentum, Jimenez got the Garnet back on track with four-consecutive free throws, building a 13-point lead. Aurelien later expanded the team's lead to 14 points with a three-pointer at the 12:00 mark. 

- After Dickinson shrunk the team's lead to five, Stump connected from long range for a big-time three. However, the Red Devils would keep clawing away, rallying for five-straight to pull within three points with 6:03 left.

- Moments later, Swarthmore regained control of the game. Stump added to his career day with another long ball, before touching home a layup after an excellent feed from Aurelien, building a nine-point lead, 77-68. 

- Paquette battled inside the paint for an offensive rebound before serving a pass to Coleman, who drained a three-pointer from the top of the key to put Swarthmore in front by 11 points. The bucket put away the Devils, who were held in check in the final minutes. 




GARNET LEADERS
Points: Stump 19
Rebounds: Paquette 8
Assists: Kageyama 7
Steals: Paquette 3

UP NEXT
The Garnet (7-6, 1-0) return home against Muhlenberg on Wednesday.