After the visiting Wolves (6-5) led briefly 4-3 to start the game, MVNU used a 14-4 run to take a 17-8 lead at the 12:53 mark. Senior forward Connor Gregg led the way with eight points, while junior guard Ben Falkenberg (left) nailed a pair of three-pointers.

With the Cougars, who are ranked eighth in the latest NAIA Division II poll, leading 23-15, MVNU closed the half on a 27-10 surge to take a commanding 50-25 advantage at the break. Falkenberg scored 10 points, while junior guard Dan Borcherdt added eight points as both players drained a pair of treys.

Falkenberg led the Cougars with 19 first-half points that included five three-pointers, while Gregg tossed in 10 points. Borcherdt added eight points, and junior wing Andy Francis grabbed five rebounds. MVNU shot 55.9 percent from the field (19-for-34), 46.7 percent from three-point range (7-for-15), and 71.4 percent from the free throw line (5-for-7). The Cougars also out-rebounded Michigan-Dearborn 24-15 and committed just five turnovers.

Steve Banks led the Wolves with seven points off the bench, while Jordan Masters went 3-for-3 from the field for six first-half points. Michigan-Dearborn shot 34.3 percent from the field (12-for-35) and went just 1-for-15 from three-point range (6.7 percent).

Five quick points by Francis extended MVNU’s lead to 55-27 with less than a minute gone by in the second half. However, the Wolves used a 20-11 spurt to close the gap to 66-47 with 12:50 to play as Matt Ponik scored 13 quick points.

A pair of free throws by freshman guard Brandon Short (right) and back-to-back three-pointers by Borcherdt and Falkenberg pushed the lead back to 74-47 with 11:58 to play and the Cougars led by at least 23 points the rest of the way and by as much as 39 points when freshman post Adam Grimm hit a pair of free throws with 2:04 to play to make it 100-61 and earn the home crowd free French fries by hitting the century mark. MVNU finished with a 103-69 victory to match its highest scoring total of the season.

Falkenberg finished with a season-high 28 points as he went 8-for-14 from three-point range. He also dished out a career-high eight assists and registered three steals. Borcherdt added 14 points with four treys and seven assists, and Gregg and Short each tallied 10 points apiece. Francis and junior forward Jadin Thomas both contributed nine points apiece, while senior forward Evan Yates and junior forward Matt McKinley tossed in eight points each with Gregg, Yates, and sophomore center Bryce Sanborn all grabbing six rebounds apiece. MVNU shot 55.7 percent from the field (39-for-70), 45.5 percent from three-point range (15-for-33), and 55.6 percent from the free throw line (10-for-18).

“This was a very unselfish game by our players,” said MVNU head coach Scott Flemming. “The guys were so excited about passing the ball and were giving up good shots for great shots. When you play like that, you are pretty tough to beat.”

“This may have been Ben’s most complete game,” Flemming added of the team’s leading scorer. “He really did a great job of passing up other scoring opportunities to get his teammates involved. He also did a nice job of playing defense and really put together a good all-around game. The whole team really played well and was really into finding the open man for the best possible shot.”

Ponik scored 17 points to lead Michigan-Dearborn, while Masters added 10 points and four blocked shots. Shane Denooijer also finished with nine points, four assists, and six rebounds. The Wolves shot 41.1 percent from the field (30-for-73), 16.7 percent from three-point range (4-for-24), and 55.6 percent from the free throw line (5-for-9).

The Cougars will return to action on Saturday at 6:00 p.m. when the tournament will move to nearby Gambier as MVNU will travel to Kenyon College to face the host Lords in the championship game.

Kenyon (2-5) rallied from a 37-36 halftime deficit to defeat Ohio Christian University 78-65 in Friday’s other first round game.  (Boxscore)   Dave Knapke led the way with 20 points and 16 rebounds, while Bryan Yelvington also posted a double-double with 14 points and 12 rebounds. Kodey and Korey Haddox contributed 12 and 10 points respectively, and the Lords posted a commanding 54-26 rebounding advantage against the smaller Trailblazers.

Ohio Christian (6-6) had four players reach double figures as Stephan Vasiloff and Tim Baker each finished with 13 points, while Dan Garnett and Robert Lassiter tossed in 12 and 11 points respectively. The Trailblazers will take on Michigan-Dearborn in the consolation game at 4:00 p.m.