OLIVET, Mich. -- It took a comeback from a regulation, buzzer-beating, game-tying 3-pointer and an additional 10 minutes of game time to do it, but the Notre Dame Falcons came through in the end to run their season record to 5-0 Saturday. A final score of 80-71on the Cutler Event Center scoreboard signaled an NDC win over Concordia (Mich.) in Olivet College's Gary Morrison Tip-Off Tournament, played in Olivet, Mich.

Freshman forward Eric Dummermuth (Dover, Ohio) scored 29 points and grabbed 13 rebounds, as the Falcons continued their best start to a season (5-0) in program history. Dummermuth was named the tournament's MVP.

“This was a big win for us,” said head coach Kevin Bille.  “It came on a night when maybe we didn't have a great shooting touch, but we did a lot of little things well as a team, and that's what we're focused on as we develop.”

Notre Dame jumped out to double-digit lead (23-10) in the first 10 minutes of the contest, with the Cardinals connecting on just five of their first 15 attempts from the floor.  Concordia, however, then went on a 10-0 run to cut the Falcon lead to 23-20.  NDC would close out the half well to establish a 36-28 halftime lead.  Dummermuth paced the Falcon attack in the first, with17 points.  Junior center Karim McFarlane (Portmore, Jamaica) added 11 points and seven rebounds.

In the second stanza, momentum swung back in the favor of the Cardinals.  When Marquis Turley (So./Grand Rapids, Mich.) hit Concordia's third trey of the period, at 11:35, he capped off an 8-0 run to give the Cardinals a 45-44 lead.  Both sides played a lot of zone defense schemes during the game, and the three-ball was a key aspect of several scoring runs.  Overall, in the 50-minute game, there were 59 attempts from beyond the arc (CU 30, NDC 29).

After Turley's 3-pointer, the two teams traded baskets for much of the second half.  At the one-minute mark, Turley drained a jumper to put the Cardinals up, 56-55.  Each team then committed a turnover, and NDC got an offensive rebound off a miss, giving them the ball with a one-point deficit and 25 seconds showing on the clock.

After a series of timeouts, Notre Dame got what looked like a game-winner in the form of a 3-pointer from sophomore guard Eric Maag (Columbus Grove, Ohio) with seven seconds showing on the clock.  That put NDC up, 58-56.  At the buzzer, however, Turley struck again, draining a 2-pointer to tie the game and send it into overtime.

In the first extra session, the two teams traded field goals for the entire five minutes.  An Eric Dummermuth layup at 0:36 forced the second overtime.

The second overtime featured a flurry of baskets, mostly from the Notre Dame five.  The Blue & White scored the first six points of the second overtime.  Concordia would cut the Falcon lead to two, 71-69, at 2:17.  But from that point on, mostly at the foul line, Notre Dame outscored the Cardinals, 9-2.

For the game, Notre Dame shot a season-low 36.4 percent (28-for-77).  The Falcons shot just 25.0 percent (7-for-28) in the second half.  Concordia (4-3) shot 37.8 percent (28-for-74) for the game.  Each team garnered 51 rebounds; NDC won the turnover battle, 18-15.

Dummermuth's 29 points were a game-high.  Concordia's Turley scored 27 points.  Three other Falcon players - senior forward Dan Jones (Niles, Ohio), Eric Maag, and Karim McFarlane – also finished in double figures.  Dan Jones had a game-high and career-best eight assists.

For the two-day tournament, Dan Jones was named to the all-tournament team.  Dummermuth earned the event's MVP award – over the two games, the 6-foot-7 forward scored 50 points, going 20-of-33 from the field.  He also grabbed 20 rebounds.  Through five contests, the 2008 All-Ohio (Division II) selection is averaging 17.2 points and 7.6 rebounds per game.

The win for NDC is their fifth straight.  The program's previous best start to a season was in 2005, when the Falcons started 3-0.

Notre Dame will put that unbeaten record on the line next in a home game – they're scheduled to host Roberts Wesleyan (N.Y.) at Murphy Gymnasium on Tuesday, Nov. 25.  Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m.