The season began with high expectations as MVNU returned three starters and eight total players from the squad that went 27-9 and advanced to the Elite Eight at the NAIA Division II national tournament. Ranked 14th in the preseason poll, the Cougars got off to a 6-1 start to the season with the only loss coming at the hands of Grace (Ind.) College, who was ranked in the Top 25 during the season and finished with over 20 wins.

After dropping two of its next three games with losses at Walsh University (28-6) and NCAA Division II Ashland University (16-12), the Cougars rattled off 10 straight wins to improve to 17-3 as the team climbed to 11th in the weekly national poll.

Following a loss at Cedarville University (23-8), MVNU closed out the regular season by winning six of its final seven games with the only other loss coming by one point at Shawnee State University (16-14) as the Cougars’ record stood at 23-5. MVNU also captured a share of the American Mideast Conference South Division title with a 15-3 conference mark - the best conference record in school history - as the Cougars shared the title with Walsh and Cedarville as all three teams split their head-to-head meetings during the season. The team also went 9-0 at home in conference play for the first time ever and posted a school-record 12-1 mark in the friendly confines of the Physical Education Center overall.

At that point, MVNU set its sights on defending its AMC Tournament title from the previous year. The Cougars pulled out a 69-66 home win over Shawnee State, but then the team fell 102-100 in overtime at Notre Dame College (19-14) on a three-pointer at the buzzer in the tournament semifinals.

Despite the loss, MVNU still received the second of eight at-large berths into the 32-team NAIA Division II national tournament in Point Lookout, Missouri, as the Cougars were ranked 10th in the final national poll. In the first round, MVNU rallied from an 18-point second-half deficit to knock off Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) University 73-72 on a free throw by senior forward Ryan Seesholtz with 0.6 seconds left.

In the second round, the Cougars tried to use its comeback magic again as MVNU rallied from a 13-point deficit in the second half against second-seeded MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.) to knot the score at 73-73 with 13.9 seconds left. However, the Pioneers (34-2), who went on to win the NAIA Division II national title, scored on an offensive rebound and putback with 0.6 seconds left and then watched as Seesholtz’s desperation three-point attempt off a full-court pass from senior post Mark Hess bounced off the rim as time expired as the Cougars fell 75-73 to end their season.

“As I’ve said in the past, I wish we could have extended our season a few more games,” said MVNU head coach Scott Flemming, who improved to 351-209 in 17 seasons at his alma mater and was named the National Christian College Athletic Association East Region Coach of the Year. “However, overall I am very pleased with what our team accomplished. To go 15-3 and win a conference championship in the AMC is not an easy task. We were battling with two teams (Walsh and Cedarville) who were in the top 15 in the country most of the season.”

“After a great regular season and high hopes for postseason play, it was really amazing how this team came together after Ben (Falkenberg) went down early in our first game at the national tournament,” added Flemming, referring to the broken hand suffered by the team’s leading scorer midway through the first half of the Dakota Wesleyan game. “I believe everybody in the stands as well as our opponents saw the unusual character and determination that this group demonstrated. I have never been more proud of a team than this one. We did our best to be intentional about playing for God’s glory.”

Individually, three seniors wrapped up their careers in fine fashion. Center Steve Mayes averaged 8.4 points and a team-high 7.2 rebounds while also breaking his own school record with 135 blocked shots to rank second among all NAIA Division II players. Mayes finished his career as the program’s all-time shot block leader with 361, while also ranking eleventh in career rebounding with 634 boards. In addition, he scored 851 points and became only the second player in school history to post a triple-double on November 17 versus Myers University. He was named to the AMC South Division Honorable Mention list for his efforts this year.

Seesholtz capped off his solid career by averaging 11.2 points and 6.4 rebounds to go along with a team-leading 67 steals that ranked 20th nationally. He also shot 43.1 percent from three-point range (31-for-72) and was second on the team with 88 assists as he was named to the AMC South Division Second Team and the NCCAA East Region Honorable Mention list. Seesholtz, who became the 29th player in school history to score 1,000 points on November 18 versus LaRoche (Pa.) College, finished his career ranked sixth in school history in rebounds (793), seventh in steals (188), and 21st in points (1,292).

Hess also closed out his stellar career by averaging 12.0 points and 6.7 rebounds while shooting a team-best 57.0 percent from the field (131-for-230) and 70.1 percent at the free throw line (61-for-87). He also dished out 57 assists as he was named to the AMC South Division Third Team and the NCCAA East Region Second Team. Hess finished his career ranked third in school history in rebounds (982), fourth in free throws made (332), fifth in field goals made (749), and sixth in points (1,839). He was also selected as an NAIA Division II and an NCCAA Scholar-Athlete and earned a spot on the CoSIDA Academic All-District IV Second Team.

“This was a special group of young men,” said Flemming. “They represented our school well on the court, in the classroom, and in the community. It all started with our seniors. Everything considered, Mark (Hess), Ryan (Seesholtz), and Steve (Mayes) comprise one of the best classes to ever put on a Cougar uniform. I can truly say that I will miss these young men. I have no doubt they will all be highly successful in their future endeavors.”

Falkenberg, a sophomore guard, led MVNU in scoring and ranked fourth in NAIA Division II as he averaged 24.0 points per game while setting the school’s single-season scoring record with 743 points. He also led all NAIA Division II players with 120 three-pointers made and he was in the top five in the country in free throw percentage at 89.8 percent (123-for-137). He also dished out 81 assists and was second on the team with 29 steals. For his efforts, Falkenberg was named both the AMC South Division and NCCAA East Region Player of the Year. He also became the 30th player in school history to top 1,000 points as he accomplished the feat quicker than any other MVNU player (53 games), and he already ranks 18th on the program’s career scoring list with 1,332 points, which is 103 points more than the previous record for a sophomore player. In addition to his honors on the court, Falkenberg was also named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District IV First Team and the CoSIDA Academic All-America Second Team. Finally, he became only the third MVNU men’s basketball player to be named to the NAIA Division II All-American First Team.

Sophomore guard Dan Borcherdt also had an outstanding season in his first year at MVNU after transferring in from Army. Borcherdt averaged 12.4 points and led the team with 89 assists to go along with 24 steals and 61 rebounds. He also shot 90.3 percent from the free throw line (84-for-93) to rank in the top five in NAIA Division II in that category, and he was second on the team with 82 three-pointers made. For his efforts, he was an NCCAA East Region Honorable Mention selection. Borcherdt led MVNU in scoring at the national tournament by averaging 16.0 points in the two games.

Junior forward Connor Gregg was a solid contributor for the Cougars off the bench as he averaged 6.5 points and 5.3 rebounds while shooting 51.1 percent from the field (71-for-139) and 71.4 percent at the free throw line (50-for-70). Gregg was also second on the team with 21 blocked shots.

Dustin Ultican, a junior guard, also provided a spark for MVNU in his first year after transferring in from the University of Charleston (W.V.). Ultican averaged 5.5 points and 1.6 rebounds while contributing 73 assists and 23 steals. He also averaged 14.0 points and nailed a team-leading seven three-pointers in the two national tournament games as he picked up some of the offensive load in Falkenberg’s absence.

Sophomore wing Andy Francis played in all 32 games and provided valuable minutes for the Cougars off the bench as he averaged 3.0 points and 2.4 rebounds. Junior forward Evan Yates also saw action in 27 games before being sidelined by an injury as he contributed 2.5 points and 3.1 rebounds. Sophomore forward Matt McKinley (1.2 ppg and 1.2 rpg), freshman forward Joe Kalb (1.1 ppg and 1.1 rpg), and freshman post Bryce Sanborn (1.0 ppg and 0.9 rpg) rounded out the bench for MVNU.

The Cougars will lose all of their inside starters with the graduation of Mayes, Seesholtz, and Hess. However, with the starting backcourt of Falkenberg and Borcherdt returning along with a lot of other experienced players, the nucleus is in place for the team in 2007-2008. Flemming and his staff are also hitting the recruiting trail hard, and MVNU will look to extend its string of 20-win seasons to seven next year. The Cougars have now posted 20 or more wins in 10 of the last 11 seasons.