Box Score
SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio -- Tuesday night marked the opening round of the Mountain East Conference Tournament, and the sixth-seeded Falcons picked up an impressive 102-84 win over the #11 Virginia-Wise Cavaliers. With the win, the Falcons advance to the MEC Tournament Quarterfinals in Charleston, West Virginia, where NDC will take on third-seeded Fairmont State at 2:15 pm on Friday.

The Falcons (19-10, 13-10 MEC) were led by Tyree Gaiter and Will Vorhees, who were each named 1st Team All-Mountain East earlier Tuesday. Gaiter posted 32 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds - one rebound short of his second consecutive triple-double - while Vorhees had 31 points, seven rebounds and three assists for the Falcons.

Both the Falcons and Cavaliers battled to a near-even score throughout the first 11 minutes, as NDC led by just two, 24-22, with 8:54 remaining in the first half.

Gaiter then scored three straight buckets for the Falcons, pushing the lead to eight as the Falcons began to distance themselves from the Cavaliers. A few minutes later with 5:29 remaining in the first half, Gaiter drained a 3-pointer to give NDC a double-digit lead, 37-27.

The Falcons carried a 10-point lead into halftime, holding a 46-36 advantage over the visiting Cavaliers.

At the start of the second half, the Falcons kept their foot on the pedal. A 3-pointer from Ryan Hickoff extended NDC's lead to 14 points, 64-50, with 14:01 remaining in the game.

Another shot from deep, this time a three from Kyauta Taylor, gave NDC a 72-56 lead over the Cavaliers with just over 11 minutes remaining. 

NDC was strong at the free throw line all night, making 16-of-19 shots at the line to keep a steady lead over Virginia-Wise. The Falcons also used an efficient shooting night from beyond the arc (44.4 percent on 3's) to maintain their advantage over the Cavaliers.

From there, the Falcons forced defensive stops and held on for a 102-84 victory over Virginia-Wise in the first round of the 2016 MEC Tournament. With the win, the Falcons improve to 19-10 on the season, including a 13-10 mark against MEC competition.

NDC will now advance to the MEC Tournament Quarterfinals in Charleston, West Virginia on Friday, March 4. The sixth-seeded Falcons will take on the third-seeded Fairmont State Fighting Falcons, with the winner advancing to the MEC Tournament Semifinals on Saturday evening.

Media links will be made available for Friday's game as they become available. Check back here on NotreDameFalcons.com and follow us on Twitter (@NDCFalcons) for updates on the Falcons.