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MOUNT VERNON, Ohio - The Mount Vernon Nazarene University men’s basketball team capped off one of the best seasons in school history with a strong finish and a great run in the NAIA Division II National Tournament as the Cougars posted a 27-9 overall mark to match the school record for most wins in a season.

The season began with high expectations as MVNU returned four starters and nine total players from the previous season in which the team had gone 21-11. After a loss to eighth-ranked Cornerstone (Mich.) University to start the season, the Cougars won 12 of their next 15 games in posting a 12-4 record. During that span, the team posted road wins at Walsh University, the defending NAIA Division II national champion, and Tampa (Fla.) University, an NCAA Division II power.

Then, the Cougars went through a lull that saw them drop four of their next six games as the team’s record moved to 14-8 following a loss at Ohio Dominican University on January 21. At that point, MVNU needed to make a strong run to finish the season just to qualify for the American Mideast Conference Tournament as the team’s conference mark stood at 5-5.

At that point, the true character of the team began to emerge as the Cougars bonded together as a team and became determined to turn things around. MVNU rattled off eight straight wins to close out the regular season as the team finished AMC South Division play with a 13-5 mark to finish in second place. The Cougars posted a perfect 9-0 mark in the second half of the conference schedule for the first time ever, and they also had the distinction of sweeping Walsh as MVNU handed the Cavaliers two of their three conference losses on the season.

As a result of finishing second in the AMC South Division standings, the Cougars earned the top seed in the AMC Tournament. MVNU continued its winning ways by posting overtime victories against Malone College (88-82) and Saint Vincent (Pa.) College (103-98) to advance to the championship game. In the title game, the Cougars knocked off Cedarville University 61-56 behind a capacity crowd that had arrived nearly two hours prior to game time as MVNU claimed the AMC Tournament crown and earned an automatic berth in the NAIA Division II National Tournament in Branson, Missouri.

The Cougars, who were ranked 15th in the final NAIA Division II poll, were seeded 16th in the 32-team event that was held at the College of the Ozarks (Mo.). MVNU won its first round game 87-81 over 17th-ranked Iowa Wesleyan College and then proceeded to knock off top-seeded Embry-Riddle (Fla.) University, who had been the top-ranked team in NAIA Division II in the last eight polls of the year, 84-78 in the second round.

The win over Embry-Riddle moved the Cougars into the quarterfinals for only the second time in school history and also extended the team’s winning streak to 13 straight games. Despite a valiant effort, MVNU fell 95-86 to eighth-seeded Lindenwood (Mo.) University, who was ranked sixth in the final poll, in the quarterfinals as the Cougars’ season came to an end. In recognition of the team’s performance on the court and their attitudes and character on and off the court, MVNU was selected as the recipient of the Team Sportsmanship Award that is given annually to one of the 32 teams at the national tournament.

“I always want to extend our season at least one more game,” said MVNU head coach Scott Flemming, who notched his 300th win at his alma mater on November 4 against Grace Bible (Mich.) College and was selected as the National Christian College Athletic Association East Region Coach of the Year. “This certainly was the case at the national tournament. All things considered, though, I am very pleased with the outcome of our season. For our players to be able to say they were one of the top eight teams in the country is extremely significant. To be able to win 13 straight games in our tough conference as well as at the national tournament is unbelievable.”

“We had high expectations at the beginning of the year,” added Flemming. “Although we met those expectations in specific games early on, we were very inconsistent during the first half of the year. After our road loss at Ohio Dominican, we renewed our commitment to having a great season.”

The five seniors led MVNU to its fifth straight 20-win season and its ninth 20-win campaign in the past 10 years. The seniors finished their career with a 91-46 four-year record (.664 winning percentage) that included a 46-19 record at home.

Point guard Alan Bock averaged 6.2 points and 2.7 rebounds per game as he closed out his stellar career. He also ranked tenth in NAIA Division II in assists per game (5.9) as he led the Cougars with 211 assists and 76 steals. He finishes his career ranked second in school history in assists (638) and third in steals (218). He was named to the NCCAA East Region Honorable Mention list, and he was selected to the Food for the Hungry Holiday Invitational All-Tournament Team. A standout in the classroom with a 3.99 grade point average, Bock was also named to the NAIA and NCCAA All-America Scholar-Athlete Teams and the ESPN The Magazine© Academic All-America Third Team for the second straight year.

Guard Andrew Thompson averaged 11.8 points and 1.8 rebounds in his final season as he was also second on the team in three-pointers made (83), assists (85), and free throw percentage (80.3 percent). He also recorded 24 steals. Thompson finishes his career ranked second in school history with 133 games played, seventh with 245 career three-pointers made, and 20th with 1,257 career points scored. He was named to the AMC South Division and NCCAA East Region Honorable Mention lists and joined Bock as a repeat on the NAIA and NCCAA All-America Scholar-Athlete Teams.

Forward Nick Zarley saw action in all 36 games and made seven starts as he closed out his four-year career for the Cougars by averaging 4.8 points and 3.2 rebounds. Zarley, who made 31 three-pointers on the season to go with 29 assists and 28 steals, led MVNU with 14 points in the AMC Tournament championship win over Cedarville and tossed in nine points on a trio of three-pointers in the team’s loss to Lindenwood.

Guard Bryan Wyant and post Josh Haumschild also wrapped up their four-year careers with the Cougars. Wyant played in 13 games during the season and made a three-pointer on the final shot of his career against Lindenwood, while Haumschild saw action in nine games during the season.

“I will especially miss this group of seniors,” said Flemming. “They have been a special group. I give our seniors a lot of credit for the strong finish that we had.”

Junior post Mark Hess put together another solid season for MVNU as he averaged 14.8 points and a team-high 8.0 rebounds while shooting 54.7 percent from the field. He also dished out 71 assists and recorded 12 blocked shots and 20 steals. Meanwhile, he moved into 15th place in school history in career points (1,515), fifth place in career rebounds (802), and tied for sixth in free throws made (271). For his efforts, Hess was named to the AMC South Division and NCCAA East Region First Teams as well as repeating as an NAIA Division II Honorable Mention All-American. He also joined Bock and Thompson on the NAIA and NCCAA All-America Scholar-Athlete Teams and was named to the ESPN The Magazine© Academic All-District First team.

Junior wing Ryan Seesholtz averaged 11.8 points and was second on the team with 7.3 rebounds as he started all 35 games in which he played. He also compiled 71 assists and 53 steals while shooting 53.4 percent from the field. He led the Cougars in the upset of Embry-Riddle with a game-high 26 points and nine rebounds. Meanwhile, he moved into eleventh place on the school’s career rebounding list (589) and is now 66 points away from the 1,000-point mark in career scoring. Seesholtz was named to the AMC South Division Honorable Mention list and became the fourth member of this year’s team to be named to the NAIA and NCCAA All-America Scholar-Athlete Teams.

Junior center Steve Mayes had a record-setting season as he blocked a school-record 132 shots and became the program’s career leader with 226 blocks. He also led all NAIA Division II players with 3.8 blocks per game. In addition, he averaged 8.2 points and 6.2 rebounds while shooting 54.6 percent from the field. Mayes was named to the Food for the Hungry Holiday Invitational All-Tournament Team during the season.

Freshman guard Ben Falkenberg burst on to the scene for the Cougars this year and led the team in scoring at 16.4 points per game despite coming off the bench in all but one game. He set a new school record for most points by a first-year player with 589, and he led the team with 108 three-pointers made. He also finished eighth in NAIA Division II by shooting 86.5 percent at the free throw line that included making his final 19 straight free throws. Falkenberg was selected as the AMC South Division Newcomer of the Year and was named to both the AMC South Division Third Team and the NCCAA East Region Second Team.

Sophomore forward Connor Gregg was also a significant contributor for MVNU after transferring in from Tiffin University prior to the season. Gregg averaged 7.3 points and 4.9 rebounds and he was second on the team with 27 blocked shots as he played in all 36 games with eight starts.

Sophomores Josh Smith and Evan Yates along with freshman Andy Francis also rounded out the Cougars’ bench as the team utilized every player in key roles during the course of the season.

“This was a team with great chemistry,” said Flemming. “There may have been some teams who were bigger, quicker, and more athletic, but there were very few who played as well together as our team. It seemed like we had different players stepping up each game.”

“I have thoroughly enjoyed coaching this team,” Flemming added. “Mostly, it is because of the outstanding young men that we have. This was a group who did a great job of representing my values, our school’s mission, and their own personal faith on and off the court. I truly feel spoiled with this team, and it has been my privilege to be their coach.”

While losing the five seniors will create a void for the Cougars next year, three starters and eight total players will return from this roster as MVNU will look to build on this year’s success.