MVNU (5-4) scored the first six points of the game and would never trail in the contest as the Cougars built a 25-16 lead by the 9:41 mark of the first half. Senior post Bryce Sanborn led the way with eight points, while senior wing Travis Brown added five points.

The lead grew to 40-26 on a three-pointer by sophomore guard Robbie Taylor with 2:31 left in the half, but Rocko Holmes and Chad McMullen each made a basket to pull the Cardinals (3-5) back within 40-30 at the break.

Brown led MVNU with 10 first-half points, while Sanborn and junior guard Brandon Short (left) added eight points apiece with Sanborn grabbing eight rebounds. The Cougars shot 57.1 percent from the field (16-for-28), 66.7 percent from three-point range (4-for-6), and 66.7 percent from the free throw line (4-for-6).

McMullen kept Concordia in the game with 16 first-half points on 6-for-8 shooting from the field. The Cardinals shot just 33.3 percent from the field (10-for-30), 25 percent from three-point range (1-for-4), and 75 percent from the free throw line (9-for-12).

A basket by Short to start the second half gave MVNU a 42-30 lead and the Cougars still led 56-45 after jumper by senior wing Austin Kaiser with 11:58 to play.

Six straight points by Concordia closed the gap to 56-51, but six points by Short including a steal and dunk helped MVNU push the margin back out to 63-52 with 6:34 to go.

Concordia made one last comeback attempt over the next three minutes as the Cardinals used a 14-5 surge to close the gap to 68-66 following a three-point play by Jeremy Simmons with 3:21 still on the clock.

However, that would be as close as Concordia would get the rest of the way as the Cougars went 5-for-6 at the free throw line. Short also threw down another dunk much to the delight of the MVNU fans as the Cougars went on to prevail 83-75.

Short finished with a team-high 21 points and six steals as he was named to the A+ Autobrokers Holiday Invitational All-Tournament Team. Brown added 19 points, while Sanborn posted a double-double with 16 points and 10 rebounds, and Taylor contributed 10 points and six assists. MVNU shot 52.6 percent from the field (30-for-57), 45.5 percent from three-point range (5-for-11), and 66.7 percent from the free throw line (18-for-27).

Concordia was led by McMullen with 24 points and Marius Williams, who earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team, with 23 points. Jeremy Simmons also contributed 12 points and eight rebounds off the bench. The Cardinals shot 43.1 percent for the game (28-for-65), 33.3 percent from three-point range (6-for-18), and 68.4 percent from the free throw line (13-for-19).

"I thought our guys did a nice job of battling through fatigue tonight as we had to get into our bench early in the game,” said MVNU coach Matt Moore. "With Adam (Grimm) going down with an injury, we needed someone to step up and Travis and Brandon did a great job of keeping us in a rhythm at the offensive end.”

"We did a better job of taking quality shots tonight and it showed because we made more,” Moore continued. "I think sometimes guys feel that they are open and then they should shoot it. The result isn’t always the best for the team. But, in today’s game, we took some good shots after we had movement and the results were very goo.”

In the championship game, Mid-Continent (Ky.) University downed Ohio Domincan University 62-44 as Kenny Thomas, the tournament’s Most Valuable Player scored 14 points and Donovan Willis added 12 points. Willis and Aaron Pearson joined Thomas on the All-Tournament Team, while Dominic Russo, who was the lone Ohio Dominican player to reach double figures with 10 points, and Adriene Rodriguez were also named to the All-Tournament Team.

"We have a tough road stretch now, so we will need to begin to think like road warriors as it will prepare us for the (American Mideast Conference) schedule ahead,” said Moore as the Cougars will play their next five games on the road including four in a seven-day span beginning with a December 12th non-conference contest at perennial NCAA Division II power Northern Kentucky University that will tip off at 3:15 p.m.