AVE MARIA, Fla.- The Ave Maria University men's basketball team ended the 2017-2018 season on a high note on Saturday afternoon with a 77-70 victory over Florida Memorial University. The victory marked a series sweep for the Gyrenes over the Lions, and sent the Gyrenes into the offseason with a win.

Florida Memorial roared out of the gate, grabbing a 23-8 lead less than seven minutes into the game. Davon Williams outscored the Gyrenes by himself during that run, scoring 11 points. The Lions led for the majority of the first half, and held a double-figure lead as late as 8:40 to play in the opening half. In the final three minutes of the half, Ave Maria went on a 9-1 run to turn a 41-34 deficit into a 43-42 lead heading into the halftime break. The rally was powered by a blistering shooting performance, as the Gyrenes knocked down eight of their 13 three-point attempts.

Five quick points in the opening 1:03 gave Florida Memorial an early four-point lead in the second half, but Ave Maria was able to respond with a 10-0 run to take the lead for good. The Gyrenes led for the remainder of the game, but not without threats from the Lions. The final threat came with 16 seconds left, when Omar Outar missed what would have been a game-tying three-pointer. Gianpaolo Riccio and Jovan Grujicic made four straight free throws in the final 15 seconds to seal the victory for Ave Maria on their home floor. 

Jonathan Simmons wrapped up a torrid final two weeks of play with a team-high 22 points on six three-pointers and four free throws. The freshman made at least six three-pointers in four of his final six games of the season. Grujicic logged the first double-double of his career with 15 points and 15 rebounds. Riccio was the only other Gyrene in double figures, scoring 12 points. As a team, the Gyrenes made 13 three-pointers and shot 46.4 percent from three-point territory.

Williams pulled down nine rebounds to go with 22 points to lead Florida Memorial. Also in double figures for the Lions were Roody Romain with 11 points and Travis Mitchell with ten. Florida Memorial shot just 20 percent from three-point land, missing 20 of their 25 attempts.

Ave Maria finishes the season with a pair of conference victories over Florida Memorial, which marks the Gyrenes' third season sweep over the Lions in the past five seasons.