The visiting Falcons (14-15) built an early 13-8 lead over the first five minutes as Dan Jones hit a pair of three-pointers and Jerome Pierce drained a trey of his own.

However, over the next six minutes, MVNU junior guard Ben Falkenberg (left) showed why he was an NAIA Division II First Team All-American last year as he scored 17 points that included hitting five straight three-point attempts. Junior forward Jadin Thomas also added seven points as the Cougars (23-6) used a 29-9 run to build a 37-22 lead with 8:02 left in the half.

With MVNU holding a 46-33 lead with 3:29 remaining before the break, Notre Dame used an 11-3 run to close the half as the Falcons pulled within 49-44 as the teams went to the locker rooms.

Falkenberg led the Cougars with 22 first-half points as he went 6-for-9 from three-point range. Thomas added 14 points, while freshman guard Brandon Short grabbed four rebounds off the bench. MVNU shot 51.5 percent from the field (17-for-33), 52.9 percent from three-point range (9-for-17), and 60.0 percent from the free throw line (6-for-10).

Jones paced Notre Dame with 14 points as he went 5-for-5 from the field including nailing all three of his attempts from beyond the three-point arc. Pierce and Keith Bowden added eight points apiece although Pierce was just 2-for-8 from three-point range and 3-for-10 overall. The Falcons shot a blistering 60.0 percent from the field (18-for-30), 41.7 percent from three-point range (5-for-12), and made all three of their free throws.

A jumper by Karim McFarlane closed the gap to 49-46 to start the second half, but the Cougars went on a quick 7-0 run to push the lead back to 56-46 at the 18:32 mark. Short started the spurt with his first three-point attempt since January 8 at Cedarville University, and junior guard Dan Borcherdt (right) added four points.

Notre Dame pulled within seven points on three occasions, but each time MVNU was able to respond with a basket. Holding a 60-53 advantage with 14:41 to go, the Cougars went on a 15-6 surge to extend the margin to 75-59 with 9:54 remaining. Thomas scored eight straight points during the run.

The Falcons did not give in, though, as Pierce scored 11 points with a trio of three-pointers to pull Notre Dame within 83-75 with 4:24 left on the clock.

That would prove to be as close as the Falcons would get the rest of the way as a quick 7-2 run by MVNU pushed the lead back to 90-77 at the 2:40 mark as Thomas nailed a three-pointer to cap the run.

Despite going 4-for-8 at the free throw line as a team down the stretch, the Cougars still managed to post the 94-84 victory to advance to the AMC Tournament semifinals.

“We got off to a good start and controlled most of the game,” said MVNU head coach Scott Flemming, whose team set a new school record with a 14-1 home mark this year. “We hurt them in transition tonight. We rebounded the ball well and that lead to our fastbreak points. I thought our guys made the extra pass tonight to get the better shot.”

“Needless to say, Ben and Jadin had huge games,” Flemming added. “Dan did a great job finding the open man in transition. I thought our bench gave us quality minutes as well. (Jerome) Pierce is a great player. We did our best to stop him and he still found ways to score. This is the first step towards a greater goal that we have.”

Falkenberg matched his season high as he led MVNU with 30 points on 10-for-18 shooting that included a 6-for-11 showing from beyond the arc. Thomas (left) added a career-high 29 points to go with four assists and five rebounds. Borcherdt registered 11 points, seven assists, and four rebounds, while senior post Connor Gregg contributed 10 points and seven rebounds. Short also grabbed a career-high seven rebounds to go with six points off the bench. The Cougars shot 50.8 percent from the field (33-for-65), 40.7 percent from three-point range (11-for-27), and just 58.6 percent at the free throw line (17-for-29). MVNU also out-rebounded Notre Dame 38-29 and committed just 11 turnovers.

Pierce closed out his outstanding career with 27 points and seven assists for the Falcons as he nailed seven treys in the game. Bowden tossed in 16 points, while Jones finished with 14 points after not taking a single shot in the second half after a red-hot performance in the first half. McFarlane and Kyle Miller added 12 and 11 points respectively. Notre Dame shot 53.1 percent from the field (34-for-64), 47.6 percent from three-point range (10-for-21), and 75.0 percent at the free throw line (6-for-8).

With the win, the Cougars will advance to face No. 1 seeded Malone College (20-9) as MVNU will travel to the Pioneers’ home court for an AMC Tournament semifinal game at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday. The other semifinal game will feature No. 3 seeded Ohio Dominican University (19-10) traveling to No. 2 seeded Cedarville University (20-7). Ohio Dominican knocked off No. 6 seeded Point Park (Pa.) University 94-91 in the other first round game on Thursday. The winner of the AMC Tournament receives an automatic berth into the NAIA Division II National Tournament in Point Lookout, Missouri.