WICHITA, Kan. – The Concordia Golden Bears men's basketball team (1-1) bounced back to claim an 86-84 win over Rogers State (0-2) on Sunday afternoon to finish 1-1 at the MIAA/NSIC Conference Challenge.
In what was a closely contested game throughout, it proved to be a timely 10-0 run late in the second half that put the Golden Bears over the top as they picked up their first win in three meetings with the Hillcats.
While RSU finished with a 55.6% (30-54) to 47.4% (27-57) shooting advantage, a 32-27 advantage on the glass, a 38-26 edge in points in the paint and a 15-9 advantage in points off turnovers, it was Concordia's edge from beyond the arc and at the free throw line that made the difference. The Golden Bears nearly doubled up the Roger State from three-point range with 11 made threes compared to six for the Hillcats to go along with 21 makes on 26 attempts (80.8%) from the charity stripe while RSU hit 18-24 (75.0%).
Jordan Horn was crucial in the second half surge as he scored 19 of his game-high 26 points after the break. He knocked down 8-16 from the field, 6-11 from deep and 4-4 from the line while adding three boards in the win.
Antwan Kimmons also eclipsed the 20-point mark with 20 points on 6-11 shooting and 7-8 from the free throw line while adding seven rebounds and six assists.
Japannah Kellogg gave CSP three in double figures with 12 points on a near perfect 5-6 shooting.
Isaac Johnson led the Hillcats with 20 points while Caden Fry added a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds in the loss.
For the second day in a row, very little separated the Golden Bears and their opponent in the opening half with 13 lead changes to go along with four ties before the break. It was Concordia that got off to a fast start as they scored the first six points on back-to-back threes from Horn and Sluice before extending the lead to 9-2 just over two minutes into the contest. An extended 15-5 run over the next five and a half minutes put RSU in front 17-14 before Kimmons sparked a 7-0 burst to put CSP back in front 21-17 with 11:14 to go in the first half. From there, neither team was able to make much of a run as the margin remained within four until the break with a late pair of free throws giving the Hillcats a 46-45 lead at the break.
It was more of the same with five more ties and three more lead changes before the Golden Bears took control. A 7-1 run turned a 55-54 deficit into a 61-56 lead for CSP with 12:31 left, but the Hillcats pulled even three more times over the next five minutes as the score remained tied at 66-66 with 7:25 to play.
From there, Concordia orchestrated the decisive run as Horn buried a pair of threes to cap off a 10-0 stretch to give CSP their largest lead of the afternoon at 76-66 with 4:36 on the clock. RSU would not go away as they scored nine of the next 11 points to make it a one possession game at 78-75 with 1:18 to play. The Golden Bears would not relinquish the lead, however, as a Horn three doubled the lead before they hit 5-6 from the free throw line down the stretch to secure the win.
The Golden Bears remain on the road on Wednesday night as they travel to Minnesota Crookston for a non-conference contest against the Golden Eagles.
