The game went back and forth at the start with the score knotted at 10-10 at the 12:33 mark. Then, the host Pioneers (12-16, 4-9 AMC) used a 23-13 run to build a 33-23 advantage with 1:56 left in the first half as Josh Trocchio led the surge with 11 points that included a trio of three-pointers.

MVNU (22-7, 10-3 AMC) closed the gap to 33-31 at the break by scoring the final eight points of the half. Senior guard Ben Falkenberg (left) nailed a three-pointer and senior forward Jadin Thomas hit a pair of free throws and then a layup just ahead of the buzzer to give the Cougars momentum heading to the locker room at the break.

Falkenberg and senior guard Dan Borcherdt both scored nine points apiece to lead MVNU in the first half, while Thomas grabbed nine rebounds to go with four points. The Cougars shot just 26.7 percent from the field (8-for-30), 20.0 percent from three-point range (3-for-15), and 60.0 percent from the free throw line (12-for-20).

Trocchio paced Point Park with 11 first-half points off the bench as he went 4-for-5 from the field, while Devon Alexander added nine points. The Pioneers shot 37.9 percent from the field (11-for-29), 36.4 percent from three-point range (4-for-11), and 77.8 percent from the free throw line (7-for-9).

MVNU picked right back up where it left off to end the first half as the Cougars roared out on a 23-10 run to start the second half to take a 54-43 lead with 11:37 left. Falkenberg, Borcherdt, Thomas, and senior wing Andy Francis each nailed a trey to help the cause with Thomas scoring eight points during the surge.

With MVNU leading 56-46 with just under 10 minutes remaining, Point Park used a 14-5 run to close the gap to 61-60 with 6:02 still on the clock. Alexander converted two three-point plays to help the comeback, while Trocchio added four points.

The Cougars’ lead was still just 65-64 with 4:38 to go when Falkenberg drained back-to-back three-pointers to give MVNU a 71-64 cushion with 2:45 left.

A tip-in by Tony Townsend cut the Cougars’ lead to 71-66 with 2:17 remaining, but Falkenberg went 6-for-6 at the free throw line, Thomas (right) canned 4-of-4 charity tosses, and freshman guard nailed a three-pointer as MVNU was able to hold on to post the 84-75 victory.

“After our loss (at the University of Northwestern Ohio on January 17), we set a goal to win the rest of our games,” said MVNU coach Scott Flemming, whose team won its final eight AMC games in addition to the 10-game winning streak overall. “The goal was winning 10 games in a row to finish the regular season. I really thought it was possible, but I knew it would take something special to make it happen.”

“Tonight, we met that goal,” Flemming continued. “I am really proud of my players. Although we were cold shooting the ball in the first half, I thought we came out and played well at both ends of the floor in the second half. We balanced our perimeter shots with driving the ball to the basket. We created a lot of fouls and we hit all of our free throws down the stretch. Our seniors made big plays in crunch time. This was another special regular season. Now we will set new goals.”

Falkenberg finished with a game-high 31 points as he hit five three-pointers and went 12-for-13 at the free throw line. Thomas posted a double-double with 16 points and a game-high 11 rebounds while also going 7-for-8 at the free throw line. Borcherdt added 14 points, and Francis and sophomore guard Brandon Short tallied seven points apiece with Francis grabbing seven rebounds. The Cougars shot 35.9 percent from the field (23-for-64), 35.5 percent from three-point range (11-for-31), and 77.1 percent from the free throw line (27-for-35) including all 15 attempts in the second half.

Alexander led Point Park with 19 points and six rebounds, while Trocchio tossed in a career-high 15 points off the bench. Franco Sabastiani added a career-high 14 points off the bench, and Townsend finished with 12 points and a team-high eight rebounds. The Pioneers shot 41.5 percent from the field (27-for-65), 27.8 percent from three-point range (5-for-18), and 69.6 percent from the free throw line (16-for-23).

With the victory and Walsh University’ 60-50 win at Northwestern Ohio on Saturday night, MVNU earned the No. 2 seed and a first-round bye in the six-team AMC Tournament that gets under way with first round action on Tuesday. The Cougars will host the winner of the first round game between No. 3 Northwestern Ohio (17-13, 9-4 AMC) and No. 6 Daemen (N.Y.) College (20-9, 7-6 AMC) on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday’s other first round game features No. 5 seed Notre Dame College (18-11, 7-6 AMC) at No. 4 seed University of Rio Grande (20-10, 7-6) with the winner advancing to No. 1 seed Walsh (25-3, 12-1 AMC) on Saturday. The winner of the AMC Tournament will receive an automatic berth into the NAIA Division II national tournament in Branson, Mo. Cedarville University (27-3, 12-1 AMC) shared the AMC regular-season title with Walsh but earned the conference’s other automatic berth as a result of beating Walsh in the head-to-head meeting.