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GRAND RAPIDS - The 16th-ranked Calvin University men's basketball team survived a bad start and came back to defeat Olivet 81-60 in Friday's MIAA Tournament semi-final at Van Noord Arena.

Olivet (12-15) brought all the energy early, swarming the Knights' offense and making three-pointers with a small line-up on the other end to jump out to a 15-2 lead in the first six minutes.

Calvin (22-4) found some life thanks to Matt Ambrose (Kildeer, Ill./Adlai E. Stevenson), who came off the bench to make three straight shots (including two three-pointers) to get the offense rolling.

The Knights still trailed 25-16 with eight minutes to play in the half, but picked up the pace on both ends of the floor with an 21-8 run to close the first half with a 37-33 lead.

That run would continue to start the second half, as Calvin out-scored the Comets 20-4 in the opening six minutes to push its lead to 57-37. Uchenna Egekeze (Huntley, Ill./Huntley) was the catalyst for the run, scoring nine points, grabbing five rebounds and dishing out two assists while also recording one block and one steal.

After the Comets' zone limited Jalen Overway (Holland, Mich./Holland Christian) in the first half, the Knights were able to find the freshman center underneath as the game progressed as he scored 10 of his team-high 18 points in the second half. 

Calvin shot 57.7 percent from the field in the second half while holding the Comets to 29.0 percent on the other end to help increase the lead after the break. For the game, Olivet shot 33.9 percent overall and 31.4 percent (11-35) from beyond the three-point arc.

Overway led four Calvin players in double figures with his 18 points, while Egekeze scored 14 of his 17 points in the second half. Egekeze also added 12 rebounds, five assists and three steals. 

Marcus Bult (Wheaton, Ill./Wheaton Academy) added 16 points, while Owen Varnado (Muskegon, Mich./Western Michigan Christian) scored 10 off the bench.

COACH'S COMMENT: "I really thought the last eight minutes of that first half, and then the beginning of the second half, we just found it," Calvin head men's basketball coach Bill Sall said. "Uchenna, I thought, played exceptionally well and did some really good things on the defensive end and carried us for a little bit. Good to see us respond, and Matt Ambrose gave us eight big points, which was huge in that first half. In tournament basketball, you've got to be ready for anything, and we certainly know tomorrow is going to be a battle."

NEXT UP: Calvin men's basketball advanced to the MIAA Tournament final, where it will host Hope College tomorrow (Saturday, February 25) at 7:30 PM at Van Noord Arena.