MONTREAT, N.C.— The Montreat men's basketball team gritted out a win in the regular-season finale against the Bryan College Lions inside McAlister Gymnasium Saturday evening, defeating the Lions 82-78 in overtime. With the triumph, the Cavaliers improved to 19-8 (17-7 AAC) on the year, clinching the No. 2 seed in next week's Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Tournament in the process.
 
Bryan (18-10, 15-9 AAC) got off to a hot start from deep, connecting on three of its first four attempts from behind the arc to lead the Cavaliers 11-3 only 2:41 into the game. Montreat immediately answered the run, scoring seven straight to pull within one, but the Lions expanded their advantage back out to six (18-12) midway through the first period.
 
A 9-3 stretch by the home team over a span of nearly five minutes gave the Cavaliers their first lead of the contest at 21-20 with 5:30 remaining until the intermission. After a quick 12-3 run that saw the visitors tie their largest advantage of the first half, the Cavs responded with the longball. Though Montreat went 6-for-22 from beyond the arc, big threes from Noah Dunn and Mike Flenory coupled with a late layup from Tyler Rodrigue inched the Cavaliers within three (35-32) at the break.
 
Dunn collected a game-best 10 first-half points, while Rodrigue added seven. Dunn also grabbed five boards, and Djongo-Alan Tchatchouang led all players with six. The Cavs struggled from the field in the opening period, converting at just a 36.1-percent rate (13-36 FG), while Bryan shot a respectable 46.7 percent (14-30 FG).
 
A tightly-contested second half featured 10 lead changes and nine ties as the teams battled for the upper hand in the competition. Neither team held more than a five-point advantage throughout the entire frame in which Montreat outscored the Lions 39-36.
 
Dunn poured in 16 of his game-high 29 points in the second period, while adding a team-best three helpers over the span. Rodrigue continued hitting clutch shots from deep, knocking down a trio of important triples in the latter 20 minutes of regulation.
 
In the second frame, the Cavaliers bested the visitors in two vital statistical categories, recording seven offensive rebounds and forcing eight Bryan turnovers. Those rebounds and turnovers created 14 more shot attempts for the Cavs, which translated to extra looks and points for Montreat. The Lions shot 50.0 percent in the half, going 10-for-20, but the Cavaliers used 44.1 percent efficiency (15-34 FG), including seven makes from three, to force overtime.
 
After Rodrigue and Dunn combined to put the Cavs ahead 63-59 with 5:16 remaining in regulation, Bryan immediately tallied four points to close the gap. The teams then traded leads and ties with the other responding to create ties at 65, 67, 69 and 71 down the stretch. Dunn scored 10 of his points over the final 6:27 of regulation, giving the home team leads at 65-63, 69-67 and then 71-69 with 12 seconds left. A fadeaway jumper by Bryan at the buzzer extended the game into an additional period.
 
In the extra five minutes, Eli Idlett buried a triple followed by a Dunn basket to give the Cavaliers a 76-71 edge. Though the Lions pulled within one, a second-chance 3-pointer by Rodrigue proved to be the dagger with 42 seconds to play. Rodrigue finished the 82-78 contest with 19 points thanks largely to a 5-10 performance from three. Idlett ended with 11 points, while Tchatchouang and Dunn each tied for the game-high in rebounds (9).
 
Overall, Montreat converted 40.3 percent (31-77 FG) of its looks, including a 15-for-45 showing (33.3 percent) from three. Bryan notched a 45.6 percent (26-57 FG) performance, while going 10-of-29 (34.5 percent) from beyond the arc.

"What an incredible game to finish off this regular season," mentioned head coach Garrett Jones. "Our players and fans get all the credit. I'm so proud of our guys for finding a way to grind that win out," he stated.
 
Men's basketball now looks toward the quarterfinal round of the AAC Tournament in Kingsport, Tenn. On Thursday, the Cavaliers will play the winner of the first-round matchup between Tennessee Wesleyan and Kentucky Christian at a time to be determined.