GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The 15th-ranked Calvin University men's basketball team topped Hope College 62-59 on Saturday night at Van Noord Arena to win the MIAA Men's Basketball Tournament and secure its bid into the NCAA III Men's Basketball Tournament.
 
Calvin (21-6) trailed for much of the game but found a way down the stretch thanks to stellar defensive play in the second half as it held Hope (16-12) to 24.1 percent shooting and only 18 points after halftime.
 
The Flying Dutchmen took their first lead of the game at 14-13 with 14:13 to play in the first half and built that lead as high as 12 points before heading into the break with a 41-32 advantage.
 
Hope's Marcus Wourman led the Flying Dutchmen with 17 first-half points and made all three of his three-point attempts while Calvin's Uchenna Egekeze (Huntley, Ill./Huntley) battled foul trouble. The Knights were able to hang in the game thanks to 13 first-half points from Owen Varnado (Muskegon, Mich./Western Michigan Christian) and with the help of two three-pointers from Parker Swartz (Grand Rapids, Mich./Northview/Ohio Dominican University) in the final minutes to keep the deficit in single digits.
 
The Flying Dutchmen remained in control early in the second half and pushed their lead back up to 12 at 48-36, but Calvin responded with a 15-2 run to wrestle the lead away. Varnado scored eight of the Knights' 15 points during the big run and Trevin Winkle (McBain, Mich./Northern Michigan Christian) chipped in four points late in the run to cut further into the deficit.
 
After Daane Harvey (Ada, Mich./Forest Hills Eastern) banked in a three-pointer with 5:13 to play, the two teams remained tied at 56-56 for three minutes until Winkle put the Knights in front with a three-point play on a driving lay-up with two minutes left.
 
The Flying Dutchmen answered with three points in their next two possessions to tie the game at 59-59, but Winkle had the answer once again for Calvin with another driving lay-up with a minute top play to put the Knights back in front by two. After a defensive stop in the next possession and a Swartz free throw, Calvin got one final stop on a missed three-pointer as the final buzzer sounded to seal the win.
 
Calvin finished the day shooting 43.5 percent from the field, including 42.9 percent in the second half when it outscored Hope 30-18.
 
Varnado finished with a game-high 24 points (7-14 field goals, 9-10 free throws) for the Knights to go with seven rebounds. Winkle finished with 13 points (11 in the second half), while Swartz added 10 points off the bench. Egekeze finished with six points, six rebounds and two steals.
 
The win gave the Knights their first MIAA Tournament championship since 2017 and marks the 13th MIAA Tournament championship in program history. It also clinches the Knights' their 24th appearance in the NCAA III Men's Basketball Tournament, including their third in the last four seasons.
 
Calvin also pushed its winning streak to 20 straight with the win.
 
COACH'S COMMENT: "Just desperation tonight," Calvin head coach Bill Sall said. "I thought Hope (played like) the desperate team in the first half and they made some great shots. In the second half, between Uchenna (Egekeze), Parker (Swartz) and Brady (Ewing) we were able to take their top two scorers out of the mix. But the effort and desperation we had was absolutely huge. I'm really happy with our team and we're looking forward to what happens from here."
 
NEXT UP: Calvin has earned its bid into the NCAA III Tournament and will find out its first round match-up when the NCAA announces the Tournament field on Monday, March 3, at 12:00 PM.