No. 15 Dakota Wesleyan Downs CU Men’s Basketball
by Jacy Johnston
The Concordia Bulldogs took on No. 15 Dakota Wesleyan on Saturday, Jan. 16 in Walz Arena. The Tigers were too much for the Bulldogs, and Concordia fell 84-80 despite three players finishing with double figure scoring.
Early in the first half, junior Eli Ziegler netted a 3-pointer to tie the score up at nine. Ziegler once again connected on a 3-pointer and helped Concordia jump out to a 21-12 lead with less than 12 minutes left in the half. Strong shooting helped the Bulldogs maintain a 39-29 lead with four minutes left. After a quick Tiger response, the Bulldogs went into the break with a meager 43-40 lead.
After the break, senior Robby Thomas spun in a layup to extend the lead 52-48 with 16 minutes left until the end of the contest. Dakota Wesleyan soon gained the lead back from the Bulldogs, and with 8:17 to play, the Tigers controlled the game 67-63. With 9.4 seconds to go, junior Chandler Folkerts closed the gap to 81-80. The Bulldogs were unable to regain the lead again and fell 84-80.
Folkerts led the Bulldogs with 23 points and 11 rebounds to extend his double-double streak. Senior Jamie Pearson netted 17 points, and Ziegler contributed another 15 points.
The Bulldogs now stand at 11-8 overall and 5-7 in the GPAC and will continue their season at home on Jan. 20 against GPAC foe Hastings College.
