Walsh (12-2, 1-0 AMC) jumped out to a 15-8 lead over the first nine minutes as Joe Shardo scored five points and Greg Howard and Brandon Speck added three points apiece.

The Cougars (10-5, 0-1 AMC) began to chip away at the lead and were finally able to pull even at 29-29 with 2:37 left in the first half on a three-pointer by senior wing Andy Francis.

However, a three-point play by Jeremy Shardo and a basket by Eric Love extended the Cavaliers’ lead back out to 34-29, and Walsh took a 36-33 cushion to the locker room at the break.

Senior guard Dan Borcherdt (left) led MVNU with 12 points in the first half, while senior forward Jadin Thomas added 11 points. Francis also provided a spark off the bench with eight points. The Cougars shot 52.0 percent from the field (13-for-25), 41.7 percent from three-point range (5-for-12), and 50.0 percent from the free throw line (2-for-4).

Joe Shardo paced Walsh with eight first-half points, while Speck added seven points. The Cavaliers shot 54.5 percent from the field (12-for-22), 37.5 percent from three-point range (3-for-8), and 75.0 percent from the free throw line (9-for-12).

After Kyelce Cescato made a jumper to extend Walsh’s lead to 38-33 to start the second half, Borcherdt drained a three-pointer and sophomore guard Brandon Short registered a steal and a dunk to knot the score at 38-38 with just over two minutes gone by.

However, back-to-back three-pointers by Jeremy Shardo started a 34-14 run for the Cavaliers that saw them build a 72-52 lead with 6:30 left in the contest. Shardo would end up scoring 16 points during that span, while Speck also nailed a pair of treys.

From that point on, MVNU was only able to get as close as 14 points the rest of the way as Walsh prevailed 85-68 in the conference opener for both teams.

“I thought our guys were ready to play tonight,” said MVNU coach Scott Flemming, whose team had not played since December 18 against Southwestern Assemblies of God (Texas) University - a span of 16 days. “We competed in the first half, but we struggled executing on the offensive end. We made a nice run to tie it early in the second half, but when Shardo nailed the two threes it changed the momentum.”

“We broke down for a stretch defensively,” Flemming added. “They made us pay for it. We have to get tougher mentally when we get down. We now have a week to work on things.”

Borcherdt finished with 19 points to lead the Cougars, while Thomas added 13 points and six rebounds. Francis (right) tossed in 12 points, and senior guard Ben Falkenberg scored all 10 of his points in the second half as he was held without a three-pointer for the first time since January 12, 2008, against Wilberforce University - a span of 30 games. Senior forward Matt McKinley also grabbed six rebounds. MVNU shot 45.1 percent from the field (23-for-51), 31.8 percent from three-point range (7-for-22), and 83.3 percent from the free throw line (15-for-18). The Cougars also committed 17 turnovers.

Walsh was led by Jeremy Shardo with 24 points and seven assists, while Speck finished with 17 points. Cescato tossed in 12 points and grabbed five rebounds, and Howard contributed 11 points. The Cavaliers shot 58.8 percent from the field (30-for-51) including 62.1 percent in the second half while MVNU was hitting just 38.5 percent of its field goal attempts. Walsh also shot 42.1 percent from three-point range (8-for-19) and 73.9 percent from the free throw line (17-for-23).

The Cougars will be back in action on Friday when No. 20 Daemen (N.Y.) College will come to the Physical Education Center to start a three-game AMC homestand for MVNU. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 p.m.