WINONA LAKE, Ind. – Grace men's basketball team held off a late comeback from Mt. Vernon Nazarene to win 96-88.

After the results on Saturday, the No. 13 Lancers will finish third in the Crossroads League.  Grace will host Taylor in the quarterfinals of the Crossroads League Tournament on Wednesday evening.

The Lancers (19-11, 11-7 CL) had five players score at least 16 points in a balanced effort, making for a memorable Senior Day game at the Manahan Orthopaedic Capital Center.

Myles Johnson was crucial in the hard-fought victory as he propelled the Lancers with 21 points and 11 rebounds. 

The Cougars (20-10, 8-10 CL), who are receiving votes in the NAIA, took an early lead before Grace found its touch from the field. The Lancers had three different players hit from beyond the arc to take their first lead of the game at 11-10.

The teams traded baskets until a run from Grace near the midway point of the half finally put separation between the two teams.

Grace forced three turnovers, and Sons had five points as the Lancers went on an 11-0 run to surge ahead 32-19.

The Lancers ended the half with even more momentum; a trio of Lancers connected from deep to send Grace into halftime with a commanding 41-26 lead.

Matt Jennings led all players with 10 points at the half, and he also had four rebounds. Haden Deaton had nine points while shooting 50 percent from the floor.

Grace shot an efficient 48 percent from the floor and hit nine first half 3-point field goals.

The Lancers' defense held the Cougars to 31 percent from the floor and 25 percent from beyond the arc.

Grace continued to hit on all cylinders as they opened the second half. The Lancers went on a 9-2 run, fueled by Johnson who began to assert himself in the game.

Jaret Son hit a 3-pointer to give Grace a 68-44 lead as the Lancers continued to cruise.

Johnson, who had 18 second-half points, made an acrobatic reverse layup that put the Lancers up by 28.

It appeared as if Grace would coast to the victory after Johnson's triple gave Grace an 86-66 cushion with three minutes to play.

But the Cougars had one furious rally left. MVNU took advantage of turnovers by Grace, scoring 12 straight points over the next two minutes.

MVNU slashed Grace's cushion down to 88-82 with a minute on the clock.

Warner eventually helped Grace from the foul line. The senior sank seven free throws over the final 1:21 to help the Lancers secure the win.

Warner had 19 points, 5 rebounds and 5 assists. Sons finished with 15 points, 5 boards and 5 assists, shooting 4-of-8 from beyond the arc.

Deaton scored 16 points, and Jennings also had 16 points to go along with eight rebounds. 

For the game the Lancers shot 51 percent from the field and made 17 3-point baskets.

The Lancers will now turn their attention to the Crossroads League Tournament and national tournaments.