After Daniel Rose scored the first basket of the game to give the visiting Yellow Jackets (10-4, 0-1 AMC South), who are ranked 19th in the latest NAIA Division II poll, the early 2-0 lead, senior post Connor Gregg hit his first three-pointer of the season to start what would be a 30-16 run by No. 7 MVNU (13-1, 1-0 AMC South) as the Cougars went 13-for-14 from the field (92.3 percent) over the first 8:22 of the game. The only miss came on a three-point attempt at the 15:35 mark by junior guard Ben Falkenberg (left), who led MVNU with seven points in the early surge. Junior wing Andy Francis also nailed a pair of early three-pointers for six quick points.

The Cougars’ lead grew to 19 points on two occasions in the first half, but two baskets by Ryan Short pulled Cedarville within 38-25 with 3:57 left before halftime.

There was not much offense the remainder of the half, but what scoring there was came from MVNU as Francis scored four points and Falkenberg hit a running jumper at the buzzer to give the Cougars a 44-25 advantage at the break.

Falkenberg led MVNU with 11 first-half points, while Francis tossed in 10 points to go with four assists and five rebounds. Junior forward Jadin Thomas and Gregg added eight and seven points respectively and both grabbed five rebounds each. Freshman guard Brandon Short also handed out five assists and scored four points, and sophomore post Bryce Sanborn tallied four points off the bench. The Cougars cooled off to 59.4 percent from the field (19-for-32) after the red-hot start, 50.0 percent from three-point range (5-for-10), and just 33.3 percent from the free throw line (1-for-3).

The Yellow Jackets shot a dismal 29.0 percent from the field (9-for-31), 18.2 percent from three-point range (2-for-11), and 83.3 percent at the free throw line (5-for-6). Short scored eight first-half points to lead Cedarville, while Grant Walker came off the bench to score six points.

Just like in the first half, the Yellow Jackets opened the scoring in the second half as Christopher Walker hit a jumper to pull within 44-27. However, also just like in the first half, MVNU responded with a big surge - 35-14 this time - as the Cougars built a commanding 79-41 advantage with 6:57 left in the game. Falkenberg led the surge with 17 points, while Thomas (right) added eight points.

From there, MVNU was never threatened again despite a 10-2 run by Cedarville’s reserves against the Cougars’ bench to pull within 83-54 as the final buzzer sounded.

“I’m not sure anybody expected this kind of game tonight,” said MVNU head coach Scott Flemming. “Our guys played great team basketball on both ends of the floor. We got off to a great start and built a nice lead. (Cedarville) made a run at us late in the first half and then we responded to finish the half strong. That was big.”

“Our players did a great job of following our game plan defensively,” Flemming added. “I thought we really made them earn their shots. We were very unselfish offensively. This was a great effort tonight.”

Falkenberg finished with a game-high 28 points to lead MVNU, while Thomas posted a double-double with 16 points, 11 rebounds, and a career-high four assists. Francis (left) added 12 points, seven rebounds, and a career-high five assists, and Gregg registered a double-double with 11 points and a game-high 12 rebounds. Short and Sanborn each scored five points with Short handing out a career-high six assists to go with four steals, while junior guard Dan Borcherdt handed out five assists in 14 minutes of action as he returned from missing two games due to an injury. The Cougars, who finished with 24 assists, shot 50.0 percent from the field (33-for-66), 36.8 percent from three-point range (7-for-19), and 66.7 percent at the free throw line (10-for-15).

Cedarville finished the game shooting 31.2 percent from the field (20-for-64), 17.4 percent from three-point range, and 58.8 percent at the free throw line (10-for-17). Short and Christopher Walker were the lone Yellow Jackets to reach double figures with 10 points apiece with Walker also grabbing nine rebounds. Grant Walker added eight points off the bench, and Rose finished with six points, six rebounds, and three blocked shots.

MVNU will look to continue its winning ways on Saturday when the Cougars will host Wilberforce University in another AMC South Division game that will tip off at 7:30 p.m.