Four former student-athletes, Todd Sands, Brad Hostasa, Ehren Hull, and Adam Stevens, along with former men’s basketball coach and current athletic director Scott Flemming were honored for their contributions to MVNU as part of the evening’s festivities that also included honoring the 1998-1999 men’s basketball team on the tenth anniversary of that season that featured the best record in program history and the NAIA No. 1 ranking.

Todd Sands, Men’s Basketball, 1996-1999 - Click Here for Induction Video

Todd Sands was a three-year member of the MVNU men’s basketball team from 1996 to 1999 after transferring in from the University of Findlay following his freshman season.

During his career at MVNU, Sands helped lead the Cougars to an impressive three-year mark of 78-21 as he started all 99 games and averaged 15.8 points and 7.5 rebounds. The team captured the Mid-Ohio Conference title during his junior year and won the American Mideast Conference Tournament during his senior season as the Cougars earned back-to-back trips to the NAIA National Tournament.

One of the premier post players to ever play for MVNU, Sands finished with 1,563 career points with the Cougars in just three seasons and still ranks 15th on the program’s all-time scoring list. He also still ranks fifth in career blocked shots with 120, seventh in career rebounds with 747, and tenth in career field goals made with 679.

Sands led the NAIA in field goal percentage by scorching the nets at a school-record 73.7 percent clip as a junior and then ranked second in the nation as a senior as he shot 69.8 percent from the field. He holds not only the school record but the NAIA national record for career field goal percentage at an amazing 70.4 percent.

Sands received numerous honors during his career including being the conference Player of the Week four times and the National Christian College Athletic Association Player of the Week three times. After being named to the MOC Second Team as a sophomore, he was named to the All-Conference First Team in both of his final two years including being tabbed as the AMC Division II Player of the Year as a senior. A two-time NCCAA First Team All-American, Sands was an NAIA Honorable Mention All-American as a junior and then became only the program’s second NAIA First Team All-American his senior year.

After graduation, Sands also played part of one season professionally in England.

Brad Hostasa, Men’s Basketball, 1995-1999 - Click Here for Induction Video

Brad Hostasa was a four-year member of the MVNU men’s basketball team from 1995 to 1999.

During his career at MVNU, Hostasa helped lead the Cougars to an overall four-year mark of 87-42 as he played in 115 games and averaged 14.3 points and 5.1 rebounds. The team captured the Mid-Ohio Conference title during his junior year and won the American Mideast Conference Tournament during his senior season as the Cougars earned back-to-back trips to the NAIA National Tournament.

One of the most athletic players to ever play for MVNU and well-known for his high-flying dunks, Hostasa finished with 1,648 career points with the Cougars and still ranks 12th on the program’s all-time scoring list. He also still ranks seventh in career free throws made with 281 and eighth in career steals with 185. In addition, he finished with 588 career rebounds, 239 career assists, and 111 career three-pointers made.

Hostasa received numerous honors during his career including being the conference Player of the Week four times and the National Christian College Athletic Association Player of the Week four times. As a junior, he was selected to the MOC First Team and named the MOC Player of the Year. He was also selected to both the NCCAA All-American Second Team and the NAIA All-American Second Team. As a senior, he was also named to the AMC Second Team.

Ehren Hull, Men’s Basketball, 1995-1999 - Click Here for Induction Video

Ehren Hull was a four-year member of the MVNU men’s basketball team from 1995 to 1999.

During his career at MVNU, Hull helped lead the Cougars to an overall four-year mark of 87-42 as he played in 125 games and averaged 16.7 points and 2.3 rebounds. The team captured the Mid-Ohio Conference title during his junior year and won the American Mideast Conference Tournament during his senior season as the Cougars earned back-to-back trips to the NAIA National Tournament.

One of the best shooters in school history and best known for his high-arcing three-pointers, Hull finished with 2,084 career points with the Cougars and still ranks fourth on the program’s all-time scoring list. He also still ranks third in career three-pointers made with 384 and eighth in career field goals made with 726. In addition, he finished with 298 career assists and 178 career steals and he still holds a share of the school record for most three-pointers attempted in a game with 17 against Cedarville in 1997.

Hull received numerous honors during his career including being the conference Player of the Week four times, the National Christian College Athletic Association Player of the Week three times, and the NAIA National Player of the Week once. He was named to the MOC All-Freshmen Team his first season and was an MOC Second Team pick as a sophomore before twice being named to the All-Conference First Team his final two years. He was also an NCCAA First Team All-American as a junior and a two-time NAIA Honorable Mention All-American as a sophomore and a senior.

Adam Stevens, Men’s Basketball, 1996-2000 - Click Here for Induction Video

Adam Stevens was a four-year member of the MVNU men’s basketball team from 1996 to 2000.

During his career at MVNU, Stevens helped lead the Cougars to an impressive overall four-year mark of 104-29 as he set a school record by starting in all 133 games and averaged 15.0 points and 8.4 rebounds. The team captured the Mid-Ohio Conference title during his sophomore year and won back-to-back American Mideast Conference Tournament championships his junior and senior seasons as the Cougars earned three consecutive trips to the NAIA National Tournament.

One of the most versatile players in school history, Stevens finished with 1,995 career points with the Cougars and still ranks sixth on the program’s all-time scoring list. He holds the school records for most rebounds in a season with 324 in 1997-1998 and most rebounds in a career with 1,112 and he still ranks fourth in career field goals made with 788, fourth in career blocked shots with 127, ninth in career assists with 414, and tenth in career steals with 184. In addition, he finished with 226 career three-pointers made. He also made school history on December 5th, 1998, when he recorded 23 points, 11 rebounds, and 10 assists in a victory over nationally-ranked Olivet Nazarene to become the first player in program history to record a triple-double.

Stevens received numerous honors during his career including being the conference Player of the Week twice and the National Christian College Athletic Association Player of the Week three times. He was named to the MOC All-Freshmen Team his first season and was an All-Conference Second Team twice before being a two-time All-Conference First Team selection including being the AMC Player of the Year as a senior. He was named to the NAIA All-American Third Team as a sophomore and the NAIA All-American Second Team as a senior, and he was also an NCCAA First Team All-American and the NCCAA’s Pete Maravich National Player of the Year as a senior.

A standout in the classroom, Stevens was also an NAIA and NCCAA Scholar-Athlete as well as twice being named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District Second Team.

Upon graduation, Stevens played professionally for one season in England.

Scott Flemming, Basketball Coach, 1990-2009 - Click Here for Induction Video

Scott Flemming spent 19 seasons at the helm of the Mount Vernon Nazarene University men’s basketball program as the eighth coach in the program’s history. During his 19 years with the Cougars, Flemming compiled an overall record of 397 wins and 226 losses for a .637 winning percentage - as he finished with the most wins of any coach in the program’s 41-year history. In fact, the other seven coaches combined to lead MVNU to a 210-382 record in 22 years before him.

Over his final 13 seasons, MVNU compiled an impressive 297-125 mark (.704). The Cougars won one National Christian College Athletic Association national title (2002) and finished as the NCCAA national runner-up once (2004) as well as earning eight berths in the NAIA Division II national tournament during his tenure (1995, 1998-2000, 2006-2009). MVNU won three American Mideast Conference Tournament titles and earned the program’s first two regular-season conference titles. The team was also consistently ranked or receiving votes in the NAIA Division II poll including being the unanimous No. 1 during the 1998-1999 season.

For his efforts in guiding the Cougars, Flemming earned two National Coach of the Year awards (NAIA Division II in 1998 and NCCAA in 2000). He was also the Mid-Ohio Conference Coach of the Year in 1995 and 1998.

Flemming had 11 different players earn NAIA Division II All-American honors during his tenure at MVNU including three different players on the NAIA All-American First Team. He saw 17 different players score 1,000 or more career points with five going over 2,000 points. He also had 19 different players earn NAIA Division II Scholar-Athlete honors with a 3.5 or higher GPA. In addition, four players have gone on to play professionally overseas and one, Mike Wells, is entering his 16th in the NBA.

Flemming graduated from MVNU in 1980. After serving as an assistant coach at NCAA Division III Wheaton (Ill.) College and then the University of South Alabama, an NCAA Division I school, Flemming got his first job as a head coach at Nyack (N.Y.) College where he posted a 43-47 mark in three years before returning to his alma mater.

Flemming did a tremendous job throughout his coaching career at MVNU of evaluating and bringing in talented players who could have played at a higher level or players with great potential who were being overlooked by other schools and later turned out to be outstanding college players.

However, besides a drive to make his teams and players the best that they could be on the court, Flemming also saw his coaching position as his platform to impact the lives of his players and other coaches for Christ. He set a good example for his players to follow and never hesitated to share his faith and integrate it into all that he did. He looked for ways to have his players do the same through camps, clinics, and missions trips, and his biggest highlights came not from wins on the court but from the personal and spiritual growth in his players’ lives both during their time at MVNU and even after they took off the Cougar uniforms for the last time.

While his time as MVNU’s men’s basketball coach has come to an end, Flemming’s legacy lives on in the lives of all the former players he has coached and the assistant coaches who have worked under him.

With the addition of the five new inductees, the Cougar Wall of Fame has now grown to include 51 members. Of the 50 living members of the Wall of Fame, 13 of them were at the banquet and were each introduced.

In addition to the annual Wall of Fame induction ceremony, the 1998-1999 men’s basketball team was honored on the tenth anniversary of the team’s outstanding season that still ranks as the best season record-wise in school history at 27-6 as well as being the first team to ever be ranked No. 1 in the NAIA national poll. Of the 15 players who were on the roster that year, ten former players (above) were able to be in attendance to be recognized for that special season as Flemming shared remarks and a highlight video was shown.

Video Tribute to the 1998-1999 Men's Basketball Team