(E)N-D of the road
Notre Dame knocked out by Mount Vernon, 94-84
| Box |

MOUNT VERNON, Ohio – Notre Dame was knocked out of the AMC Qualifying Tournament Thursday night with a 94-84 loss to No. 22 Mount Vernon Nazarene. Ben Falkenberg (Wadsworth, OH) and Jadin Thomas (Lithopolis, OH) combined to score 59 points for the Cougars in ending the Falcons' 2007-08 campaign.

Notre Dame (14-15) jumped out to an 11-7 lead in the first three minutes of the game on a pair of treys by junior forward Dan Jones (Niles, OH) and baskets by Jerome Pierce (Sr/Toledo, OH) and Keith Bowden (Sr/Akron, OH).

Junior guard Ben Falkenberg then ignited an 11-2 run for Mount Vernon Nazarene (23-6). Falkenberg hit from beyond the arc and on drives to the hoop. The Cougars' leading scorer hit on six of his first seven attempts from 3-point range.

The Cougars led by five, 27-22, by the mid-point of the opening frame. By the 8:30-mark in the first, Falkenberg had already thrown 20 points onto the scoreboard in MVNU's Physical Education Center. The Cougars burned NDC on several transition baskets opened up by the Falcon defense being slow to get in position.

Mount Vernon would extend their lead to as much as 15. The Falcons, however, whittled that down to five (49-44) by the intermission after Jerome Pierce drilled a three-ball with two ticks remaining in the period.

Dan Jones hit three treys in the opening frame to lead NDC with 14 points. Falkenberg ripped the nets for 22 in the first.

In the second half, the Cougars extended their lead to nine (62-53) by the 14-minute mark. An all-around performance by all five players on the floor bumped that lead to 16 (75-59) by the mid-point of the second. The Cougars hit a variety of shots, inside and outside, with solid passing and good defense at the other end of the floor.

The Falcons, fueled by Pierce, chipped at the Cougar lead to get it to nine at one point. But Mount Vernon regained control and continued to hit their shots. They built their lead back to 13 (90-77) points by the two-minute mark.

Pierce, playing in what turned out to be his final collegiate game, filled the net with 19 in the second half. He finished with a team-high 27; it wouldn't be enough to trip up Mount Vernon Nazarene, who ran out the clock to claim their sixth win in their last seven outings.

The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for the Falcons. The win for MVNU sends them into the AMC Qualifying Tournament's semifinal round; they'll travel to Canton Saturday to take on Malone College. Ohio Dominican, who defeated Point Park (PA) Thursday, will travel to Cedarville to take on the Yellow Jackets in the other semifinal. The winner of the Qualifying Tournament earns the league's second automatic bid to the NAIA National Championship. Walsh University earned the league's first invite by way of winning the AMC championship.

Five Falcons finished with double-figures in the scoring column. In addition to Pierce, Keith Bowden added 16 on 8-of-12 shooting. Dan Jones added 14 but was held scoreless in the second half; he also had a game-high three steals. Pierce recorded seven assists. The Falcons shot 53.1 percent (34-for-64) on the night (47.6 percent, 10-for-21, from 3-point range).

The Cougars shot 50.8 percent (33-for-65) from the floor. They shot 40.7 percent (11-for-27) from beyond the arc. At the foul line, they held a decisive advantage in attempts, 29 to eight, but they connected on just 58.6 percent (17) of their attempts. The Cougars also won the rebound (38-29) and turnover (14-11) battles. For the game, Cougar ball handlers compiled an impressive 23-to-11 assist-to-turnover ratio.

Falkenberg finished with a game-high 30 points. The AMC's third-leading scorer was 10-of-18 from the floor and drained six treys. Teammate Jadin Thomas scored 29 on 11-of-16 shooting.

NOTES FROM THE NEST...

NO MAGIC ON THE ROAD: Thursday's game was a rematch of one of NDC's most memorable games ever - the Falcons topped the Cougars, 102-100 in overtime (Feb. 24), to advance to last year's AMC Qualifying Tournament final. That win at Murphy Gymnasium, which came on a Kyle Miller trey at the buzzer, was Notre Dame's first against MVNU in six tries. With Thursday's result, NDC is now 1-6 all-time against the Cougars. ... NDC finished their season 3-10 on the road.

BEST FOR LAST: Senior forward Keith Bowden also played in his final NDC game Thursday. Bowden went out like a lion - the 6-foot-2 veteran posted a personal season-high 16 points and added five rebounds. Bowden was 8-of-12 from the floor in the finale. Over his final six games, the Akron native (Ellet High School) shot 66.7 percent (24-for-36) from the floor.