Rhett Bonner scored 15 points, including a 3-pointer when Guilford's lead was cut to one in the second half, and the Quakers used a 17-5 run to beat Franklin & Marshall 79-67 yesterday in the NCAA Division III third-place game.
Clay Henson led the Quakers (26-6) with 20 points and Tyler Sanborn had 14 and 17 rebounds. George Neville added 17 points and seven rebounds. Bonner scored 15.
Franklin & Marshall (26-7) came up short for the fifth time in five trips to the national semifinals. The Diplomats, who have made Glenn Robinson the winningest coach in Division III with 756 wins in 38 years, have advanced to the title game once, losing in 1991.
James McNally led the Diplomats with 18 points, Georgio Milligan had 15 and Anthony Brooks 14.
The Diplomats trailed 48-35 before McNally's basket sparked a 22-10 run that pulled them to one with 8:14 to play. Daniel Selig, the only senior on Franklin & Marshall's roster, had all nine of his points in the run, capping it with two free throws.
But Bonner hit a 3-pointer with 7:56 to play, followed a basket by the Dips' Steve Tolliver with a floater in the lane and the Quakers rebuilt their lead to 69-61.
The Quakers, appearing in the national semifinals for the first time, outrebounded Franklin & Marshall 47-30 and turned 18 offensive rebounds into 14 second-chance points.
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