Men’s basketball wins Concordia Invitational Tournament once again
Photo description: Freshman Jaxon Stueve goes for the basket.
Photo credit: Courtney Wright (photo from previous game)
Cohen Carpenter
Sower Staff
The Concordia men’s basketball team won their Concordia Invitational Tournament matchup against the Concordia Ann Arbor Cardinals this Friday with a final score of 80-75.
Following a successful tip off for CUNE, both teams unfortunately began storing their good shots so they could be used later in the game. The Bulldogs were the first to take a point for free throws, and the Cardinals ended their dry spell with a jump shot two minutes in and didn’t stop there.
Just as the Bulldogs were starting to bite the dust at 3-11, freshman Hayden Frank went on a seven-point streak to bring CUNE back into the game. The Bulldogs continued to put their shots in cold storage for four straight minutes while CUAA let off a series of mildly successful three-point shots (making two of five) and widening their lead.
Frank and fellow freshmen Lukas Helms weren’t about to let that slide. Helms came in with a double layup and a wicked dunk and Frank put up another three, bringing the score to a respectable 19-19. With seven minutes left in the half, CUNE took the lead, maintaining it with a tight margin, never going over three points ahead of the Cardinals until the half was nearly over. Two good three-pointers tidied up the first half of the game for Seward, going to halftime with a score of 37-31.
The second half was a rocky start for the Bulldogs, making a shot here and there but mostly failing to put a shot up after their good rebounds. A whirlwind series of steals and fast breaks that left CUNE reeling built up some momentum for the Cardinals, who took that opportunity to go on a seven-point streak to take the lead at 45-50. Stopping the ball from rolling too far until it crushed them, the Bulldogs eventually took the game back with some great offensive plays and some choice shots from downtown.
With seven minutes to go, Seward started cooking up an absolute masterpiece, taking every shot they had out of cold storage with several good drives from juniors Noah Schutte and Bradley Bennet matching the Cardinals three for three, denying them their last hope of victory. Another CUNE dunk by junior Tristan Smith didn’t hurt their chances either.
The last two minutes of the match was a desperate (and oddly successful) attempt for Ann Arbor to take the win. One more seven-point run later brought the score within reach at 76-72, but the Bulldogs sealed the deal with four clean free throws to the Cardinal’s one three-pointer to end the game at 80-75.
The team as a whole scored 28 of 50 field goals (46 percent), 10 of 26 three pointers (38.5 percent), and had 18 assists. They made 14 of 19 free throws and 26 rebounds.
Frank, Smith and Schutte were the leading scorers with 17, 16, and 15 points respectively. Smith also managed to have 16 of CUNE’s rebounds, and Frank had five assists.
The team now has a 1-0 record in the CIT, with their next game against the winner of the Concordia Chicago and Concordia Wisconsin matchup taking place at 7:30 on Saturday in Mequon.
