Men's Basketball gets huge victory over Mayville State

LA CROSSE, Wis. – The Viterbo Men's Basketball team (14-11) beat the Comets of Mayville State on Friday night in a thrilling 67-65 victory. With the win, the V-Hawks improve to 8-4 in NSAA play, and lead the conference standings with two games remaining. 

The two teams were close throughout the entire first half, with neither team leading by more than six, until the final five minutes of the half. With 5:30 to go in half number one, the Comets made a layup to make it 29-28, V-Hawks. In the final five minutes, however, the V-Hawks went on an 8-0 scoring run to make it 37-28 before heading to the locker rooms. 

The V-Hawks managed to stretch their lead to 14 points early in half number two, but the Comets kept chipping away, and with 8:37 left, took their first lead 55-54. It was a battle from there on out, with neither team leading by more than three points the rest of the way. The V-Hawks took a three-point lead after a Nolan Martin layup made it 62-59 with 4:34 remaining, but the Comets scored the next five points to lead 64-62 with 1:32 remaining. A pair of Nicholas Malovrh free throws tied the game back up with 1:18 remaining, and with 30 seconds left, a Brady Polk jumper gave the V-Hawks the edge. The Comets had an opportunity with 14 seconds left to tie the game, but came up short on one, making it 66-65, V-Hawks. However, a turnover by the V-Hawks gave the Comets one more opportunity, but a missed layup allowed Robert Cunitz to snag the rebound and draw a foul, where he made 1-2 from the line to seal the 76-65 win.

The V-Hawks had four players reach double-figures for the game, led by Cunitz with 15. Malovrh, Jack Monis, and Polk followed with 14, 12, and 10 points, respectively. The V-Hawks will look to build their lead atop the NSAA standings tomorrow evening when they face Presentation at R.W. Beggs Sr. Gymnasium for Senior Day. Tipoff is scheduled for 5:00 PM CST. Follow the action on our website or by following us on social media.