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HAMBURG, N.Y. -- Nazareth rallied from a 29-21 halftime deficit to defeat the host Hawks 70-63 in the championship game of the Hilbert Tip-Off tournament on Sunday afternoon. Junior Nick Nadeau, who transferred to Nazareth from Hilbert, amassed a career-high 31 points as he connected on 11-20 (55 percent) field goal attempts, including 3-6 from outside the arc. Classmate Maurice Mills added 23 points and grabbed a school-record 23 total rebounds. Mills topped the school record of 21 rebounds that was held by Richard Sparks (2/12/87) and Fran Zablocki (11/30/01).

With the victory, the Golden Flyers improve to 4-5 overall. Sunday's loss was the first of the season for Hilbert, who fall to 8-1 overall.

Nazareth used an overwhelming 30-8 scoring run in the first 9:57 of the second half to change its eight-point halftime deficit into a 14-point lead. Mills started the run with a free throw just 12 seconds into the stanza. He tallied eight additional points during the run with a pair of layups and four free throws. Nadeau scored 17 points during the run, including 15 straight points for the Golden Flyers in a span of only 3:14. Nadeau's third three-pointer of the run gave Nazareth the 51-37 lead with 10:03 left in regulation. He finished with 27 points in the second period after shooting a torrid 9-12 from the field, including 3-4 on three-point shots.

In addition to Nadeau's hot shooting, the Golden Flyers built their lead by contesting shots at the defensive end to limit the Hawks' scoring chances, collecting defensive rebounds, then pushing the tempo to set up transition scoring opportunities. The Golden Flyers moved the ball well to find the player with the best shot, and they took advantage of offensive rebounds to extend their possessions.

Nazareth took its first lead of the game since the opening six minutes of the first half when sophomore Jack Mulcahy converted a three-point opportunity after junior Steven Soltysik found him wide open under the Hilbert basket. Mulcahy's three-point play gave Nazareth a 36-34 edge with 14:11 to play in regulation. Soltysik connected on a three-point shot from near the left wing on Nazareth's prior possession. After Mulcahy's points, Nadeau gave the Golden Flyers the lead for good after collecting an offensive rebound at the top of the key and converting a tear-drop shot over a Hilbert defender after driving halfway to the basket.

The Hawks rallied to within six points, 69-63, with 18 seconds to play, but they were unable to threaten Nazareth's lead. The Golden Flyers made eight free throws in the final 86 seconds to secure the victory. Toward the end of the game, Hilbert missed several open shots to slow its rally.

In the first half, Mills scored a team-high nine points for Nazareth, who fell into an early hole after connecting on less than 28 percent (8-29) of their field goal attempts. Hilbert also had a 24-21 edge in rebounds a the break. Mills' record-breaking performance on the glass helped the Golden Flyers finish with a 48-42 advantage in total rebounds at the end of the contest.

Outside of the combined 54 points from Nadeau and Mills, sophomore Denzell Jackson added five points while Soltysik, Mulcahy, and sophomore Josh Gillard each had three points.

Nazareth opens its Empire 8 schedule Tuesday, January 6th at Houghton. The Golden Flyers return to the Kidera Gymnasium to host Hartwick and Stevens on the 9th and 10th, respectively.