Hanover College's men's basketball squad posted a 61-48 victory against Franklin College in the championship game of the Heartland Collegiate Athletic Conference tournament.
With the triumph, the Panthers earn the HCAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III national tournament.
Sophomore forward Ben Lye was named the tournament's most valuable player. He scored a game-high 17 points and pulled down five rebounds off the bench to spark Hanover to its 17th consecutive victory.
Junior center Tommy Dennis scored 12 points. Senior guard Thad McCracken, who was named to the all-tournament team, added 10 points for the Panthers (26-1).
Franklin freshmen Alan Davidson and Darrius Jackson were each named to the all-tournament squad. Davidson led the Grizzlies with 15 points. Jackson added 14 points and a game-high 11 rebounds.
Hanover led throughout most of the contest. Lye scored six points during a two-minute span to help Hanover stretch its lead from six points (21-15) to 13 points (28-15) late in the first period. The Panthers led 31-19 at the break.
Lye netted Hanover's first five points in the second half as the Panthers bumped the margin to 16 points (35-19) with 17:47 remaining.
After Franklin (16-12) pulled to within 43-33 with 11:54 left, Lye started an 8-0 run with a field goal in the paint to put the Panthers ahead 51-33 with eight minutes to play. As Hanover controlled the clock, the Grizzlies could get no closer than 13 points (59-46) the rest of the way.