WILMINGTON — After a 3-1 start on the road, the Wilmington College men’s basketball team returned to the comfy confines of Hermann Court Monday night.

But the Quakers were down seven early in the second half and still trailed with 12:27 to play in the game against a pesky Franklin squad visiting from Indiana.

A defensive lockdown by Wilmington put the Franklin offense in the cooler, though, and propelled the Quakers to a runaway 82-69 win at Fred Raizk Arena.

Wilmington (4-1) trailed 48-47 in the second half with 12:59 to play. Franklin managed just four points over the next 6:38 while the Quakers took control, 66-52.

After Franklin broke the ice and made it 66-54, Wilmington’s defense led the charge again, sparking a 9-0 run to help seal the win.

The win for Wilmington was first over Franklin in program history.

Matthew Dugue led Wilmington with 20 points while grabbing five rebounds and coming up with three steals.

Wilmington shot 60 percent from the floor in the second half while forcing 10 Franklin turnovers, coming up with six steals and holding the Grizzlies to just 3 of 12 shooting from beyond the arc.

The depth of the Quakers was evident in the second half as nine players were on the floor for more than eight minutes but none more than 10.

Wilmington High School graduates Kellen Baltazar and Collin Barker played for WC but did not score.

Carson Miles, a Georgetown High School graduate, had eight points and two steals in 21 minutes.

WC also has wins over Mt. St. Joseph (73-63), Wittenberg (78-73) and Earlham (69-68) this season. The only loss was to Hanover 96-69.

In the win over Wittenberg, Ben Golan ripped the nets for 12 of 13 shooting and finished with 28 points.

Wilmington will play at Hope College 7 p.m. Friday and Calvin University 2 p.m. Saturday in a two-game Michigan road trip.