by Alan Babbitt

A sudden eight-point deficit early in the second half didn't faze the Hope College men's basketball team.

Not on the Flying Dutchmen's home court. Not in The Rivalry's 206th game. And not with an MIAA championship within the Flying Dutchmen's fingertips.

Fueled by record shooting in front of a DeVos Fieldhouse crowd of 3,085, Hope marched back for a 93-81 victory against Calvin University on Wednesday in a matchup of MIAA leaders.

The Flying Dutchmen clinched at least a share of their 41st regular-season MIAA title and the No. 1 seed for next week's league tournament. Hope (18-6, 11-2 MIAA) can secure an outright championship on Saturday, Feb. 19, at 3 p.m. at home against Kalamazoo College.

Calvin fell to 17-7 overall and 10-3 in MIAA play. The Knights lead third-place Albion College and Trine University by one game. Calvin hosts Albion on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.

It was a proud moment for head coach Greg Mitchell.

"We are obviously really fired up with the win and for a share of the MIAA championship, but just for the guys, I can't begin to tell you how hard these guys work," Mitchell said. "I think collectively, they have done way more than maybe others expect. But we knew what they were capable of doing. We showed incredible toughness. We got down eight, and a non-cohesive team could have crumbled."

Hope shot a DeVos Fieldhouse-record 65.2 percent for the game, surpassing the previous best of 62.1 in 2008 during a 94-61 against Davenport University in 2008.

Calvin jumped ahead by eight twice in the first five minutes of the second half after a see-saw first half finished with the score deadlocked at 45.

After a Luke Morrison layup and a Hope timeout 4:52 into the second half, Hope trailed 57-49. About 3 1/2 minutes later, senior Tyler George (Ada, Michigan / Forest Hills Central) made a layu[ to give the Flying Dutchmen the lead again at 60-59. 

In all, the game featured 19 lead changes and 15 tie scores.

Hope closed the game on a 23-10 run beginning with two go-ahead free throws from junior guard Evan Thomas (Okemos, Michigan / Okemos) wih 7:11 remaining. A 3-pointer from senior forward Josh Lilja followed in dramatic fashion, rattling off the rim and the backboard before dropping through the net.

"A shooting record with this team should not go hand-in-hand because we know how hard we have had to work, but they picked a great night to have their best offensive performance," Mitchell said. "But that is a credit to them being locked in and ready to go."

Thomas led the Flying Dutchmen with a game-high 25 points and 10 rebounds. He shot 66.7 percent from the field (6-9) and 92.9 percent from the foul line (13-14). 

The Flying Dutchmen went 26-29 from the foul line (89.7 percent).

Five more Flying Dutchmen finished in doubles figures, including George who had 14 off the bench.

Junior point guard Clayton Dykhouse (Zeeland, Michigan / Zeeland East) totaled 13 points and a game-high seven assists.

Senior forward Jeff Bikus (Hawthorn Hills, Illinois / Mundelein) and junior forward T.J. McKenzie Jr. chipped in 11 points apiece.

Lilja collected 10 points, including both 3-point attempts.

"The whole season, we have been working for this night," Thomas said. "It was the culmination of all the work we did. This is why we play. The way we took over the momentum and made it happen was super special."

Calvin shot 53.7 percent from the field, but Hope held the Knights to 36 second-half points. Three from Calvin scored in double figures: Thad Shymanski (21), Luke Morrison (19), and Alec Fruin (10).

Hope extended its lead in the all-time series with Calvin to 106-100.