PHOTO GALLERY by Jarrin Williams

ST. PAUL, Minn. - For the fifth time this season, the Concordia-St. Paul men's basketball team (1-5, 0-3 NSIC) dropped a single-digit loss with a 66-63 defeat at the hands of #18 Winona State (7-3, 1-2 NSIC) on Saturday evening at Gangelhoff Center.

The Golden Bears had the ball with a chance to tie the score in the closing seconds, but point guard Terez VanPelt (Osseo, Minn.) was whistled for an offensive foul on the left wing as time expired. VanPelt led all scorers with 20 points including 9-of-10 at the foul line while playing a game-high 38 minutes.

Things started rocky for Concordia, as it fell into deficits of 13-0 three and a half minutes into play, 18-3 four and a half minutes in and the largest deficit of the night at 23-7 six and a half minutes into the contest.

A few minutes later, though, Concordia found itself within four after a 14-2 spurt over a five and a half minute stretch tightened things up. VanPelt scored 10 of his game-high 20 points during the run including a pair of three-pointers.

The lead stayed in single-digits the rest of the half before Xavier Humphrey buried a three-pointer with a few seconds left in the half to put WSU ahead 35-28.

Back-to-back three-pointers by Isaiah Thomas (Fridley, Minn.) and Cole Olstad (Elgin, Minn.) to open the second half brought the game to a one-point deficit and the margin stayed within six points the rest of the night.

Thomas finished with 17 points including five three-pointers while Olstad scored 10 points in his return to the starting lineup after missing last night's contest.

In the middle of the second half, Concordia used a 7-1 run over two minutes to take its first lead of the game at 53-51 with 7:17 to play on a smooth fadeaway by Thomas just inside the arc on the left wing. A defensive stop by Concordia had the team in position to extend the lead before a turnover led to another clutch Humphrey three-pointer for WSU.

The Warriors would lead the rest of the way as freshman Demitrius Martin (Minnetonka, Minn.) misfired on the ensuing possession. Concordia never had the ball with a chance to take the lead in the final five minutes after that although it did have five possessions with a chance to tie the game including three game-tying three-point attempts.

Concordia's defense held the Warriors to 37.5% (21-56) shooting on the evening but offensively the Golden Bears managed to shoot a slightly lower 36.4% (20-55) figure. Concordia knocked down 11 three-pointers to WSU's seven, but the Warriors went to the foul line eight more times and had five more made free throws than the Golden Bears.

Humphrey and Clayton Vette led WSU with 14 points each, with Vette adding 10 rebounds. Four Warriors scored in double-figures in the contest.

Freshman Shea Mandli (Eagan, Minn.) led Concordia's group on the glass with 10 boards.

The Golden Bears return to the road next weekend at Sioux Falls (Dec. 14) and at Southwest Minnesota State (Dec. 15) next Friday and Saturday. They return home on Wednesday, December 19 for a non-conference game against Waldorf College with a 6 p.m. tip.