SOUTH EUCLID, Ohio – The No. 13-ranked West Liberty University men's team led virtually wire to wire here Wednesday night in outlasting a scrappy Notre Dame squad, 86-72, at Murphy Gym.
    It was the 17th win in the last 18 games for Coach Ben Howlett's surging Hilltoppers (23-4, 18-3) as they clinched their third straight outright MEC championship by completing the season sweep of the Falcons (9-18, 7-14).
    Notre Dame opened the game with a 3-point play from Deanthony Owens but West Liberty scored 10 of the next 13 points over the next two minutes and never trailed again.
    The patient Falcons didn't make it easy on the Hilltoppers. Running the shot clock into single digits on numerous possessions, they kept the margin under double-figures until the waning seconds of the first half.
    After leading by 11 points on multiple occasions, West Liberty settled for a 45-36 advantage at the break.
    Notre Dame came out strong in the second half, closing the gap to a single point, 51-50, on a Levi Frankland 3-pointer as the clock ticked under 16 minutes but WLU quickly took charge.
    Dalton Bolon answered with a 3-pointer at the other end, sparking a 15-5 Hilltopper surge that restored the double-digit margin, 66-55, with just under 11 minutes to play. The Falcons never got the lead under six points the rest of the night.
    Bolon and sophomore guard Patrick Robinson III led the way for the Black and Gold with 23 and 21 points, respectively. Marlon Moore Jr. added 13 points and a game-high 9 rebounds off the bench while Will Yoakum donated 11 points, 6 rebounds and a team-high 3 assists to the cause.
    Owens paced four double-figure scorers for the hosts wtih 24 points.
    Having already clinched the No. 1 seed in next week's MEC Tournament at WesBanco Arena in Wheeling, West Liberty closes out the regular season at home on Saturday against Ohio County rival Wheeling. Tipoff is set for 4 p.m.