MONTREAT, N.C.— The Montreat men's basketball team took on the NCAA Division III Brevard College Tornados in a home non-conference showdown Saturday afternoon. After a 90-82 victory over the visitors, the Cavaliers are now 3-3 on the season.
 
Both teams started the game on fire from the field with Montreat hitting eight of its first 14 tries and Brevard capitalizing on nine of its initial 14 attempts. The Cavaliers began the competition by making four of five shots from deep, including a trio of threes from Tyler Rodrigue that put the home side up 18-10 4:38 into the matchup.
 
The Tornados answered with a run to cut their deficit to just two (23-21) and Tyler Murray buried a triple for the Cavaliers, but in a half where offense dominated, a quick 5-0 spurt by the visitors knotted the score at 26 midway through the first frame.
 
An old fashioned 3-point play by Mike Flenory gave Montreat an advantage again, and a 12-2 run created double-digit separation (38-28) with 6:29 remaining in the period. Though BC went on a short stretch at the end of the half, the Cavaliers maintained a 46-39 edge with 20 minutes to go.
 
Montreat cooled from the field, shooting 47.1 percent from both the floor overall (16-34 FG) and from behind the arc (8-17 3-pt FG), while the Tornados knocked down 15 of their 33 tries (45.5 percent) and connected on just four of 15 shots from three (26.7 percent).
 
Thanks to his sharpshooting start from long range, Rodrigue led all scorers with 14 points, and Jamiel Wright ended the first as the only other player in double figures (10). Collin Mills grabbed a first-half high six boards and Murray tallied five. Both Wright and Mills each added a trio of helpers in a period that saw six different Cavaliers score at least five points.
 
Over the first four minutes of the second half, the teams traded buckets as Montreat held to its slim margin. Brevard then trimmed the Cavalier lead to just three (56-53) 4:04 into the second half; however, the home team's offense found its stroke in the ensuing moments.
 
Four separate Cavs contributed to a run that re-established a double-digit advantage before Gabriel Rivera gave Montreat its largest lead of the competition at 16 points (80-64) with 6:42 left.
 
A run over the next 4:38 allowed Brevard to chip its deficit down to six (84-78) and, though the Tornados brought the score within five (86-81) with just under a minute to play, late free throws enabled the Cavaliers to secure the 8-point triumph for their third win of the year.

"I really enjoyed watching our guys play today," said head coach Anthony Barringer. "I thought we were able to control the pace of the game and get stops when we needed to. We finally shot the ball well, which was encouraging. Against Bryan, I felt like we lost our identity, and today we showed who we are."
 
Rodrigue concluded the game with 22 points and four makes from deep, while Wright poured in 19 points and Rivera ended the matchup with 13. Mills was the fourth and final Cavalier in double figures in scoring as he finished with 10 points. He added a game-best 10 boards to complete his first collegiate double-double, and Murray added six rebounds. Wright tied for the most assists in the game with six.
 
Overall, Montreat shot better from beyond the arc (12-31 3-pt FG; 38.7 percent), while Brevard held the edge in shooting from the field (47.6 percent-45.7 percent). The Cavaliers grabbed 44 rebounds to BC's 33, including a 15-5 advantage on the offensive glass. Though the visitors had more points in the paint (38-28), the Cavs controlled the categories of bench points (29-17), fast break points (15-8) and steals (6-3).
 
Men's basketball now travels to North Carolina Central for an exhibition contest tomorrow. Tipoff in Durham, N.C. is slated for 3:00 p.m.