MANKATO, Minn.  – The Concordia-St. Paul men's basketball team (9-3, 4-2 NSIC) saw its four-game winning streak snapped on Thursday evening, falling to Minnesota State (8-5, 4-1 NSIC) 84-80 in Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference play at the Taylor Center.

The Golden Bears controlled the entirety of the first half as they led by as many as 18 points before taking a 46-37 advantage into the break, but the Mavericks managed to outscore the Bears 47-34 in the second half to secure the come-from-behind win.

Concordia finished the game 45.6% (26-of-57) from the field while the Mavericks were slightly better at 45.8% (33-of-72). Neither team shot well from beyond the arc, with CSP connecting on 6-of-21 attempts (28.6%) and MSU going 5-of-19 (26.3%). Rebounding was dead even with 40 each while the Golden Bears held a 15-13 edge in assists. The Golden Bear bench provided an advantage for Concordia, outscoring that of the Mavericks 19-10. 

Senior forward Cade Meyer led the way for CSP on offense with 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting, also pulling down two rebounds.

Antwan Kimmons was just behind him with 16 points, eight rebounds, four assists, and three steals. Kimmons now sits just 10 points shy of 1,000 in his career at CSP as he looks to become the 20^th member of the 1,000-point club.

Sophomore Ben Kopetzki was the only other Golden Bear in double figures with 10 points, two rebounds, and three assists. The trio of Marcus Skeete, Ian Sluice, and Sean Mathieu added nine points each for Concordia.

After a scoreless 1:30 of play to open the game, the Golden Bears found a nice groove as they connected on four of their next five field goal attempts to open a 12-3 lead less than five minutes into the game. The Mavericks struggled to shoot the ball early in the game, making just three of their first 20 field goal attempts. Concordia's lead continued to grow in the following minutes during the Maverick drought, peaking at 17 points with a 38-21 advantage with 4:25 on the clock. The Mavericks finally found something and put together a 16-8 run of their own to close the half, cutting the deficit to nine at 46-37 at the intermission.

The Golden Bears finished the half 17-of-32 (53.1%) from the field while the Mavericks went 15-of-35 (42.9%). Both teams were exactly 4-of-11 (36.4%) from beyond the arc. Concordia dominated the glass and shared the ball more effectively, holding a 23-14 rebounding advantage and a 10-8 edge in assists.

MSU continued to carry the late momentum surge into the opening minutes of the second half, scoring the first 13 points of the half in a run that lasted nearly four minutes to take a 50-46 lead.  The teams jockeyed back and forth with four lead changes in the following minutes, but it was the Mavericks grabbing the lead at 56-55 for what proved to be the final time with 13:05 on the clock.

The MSU lead reached double digits at 72-61 with just over six minutes remaining, but the Golden Bears battled back to make it a one-point game after a clutch three pointer from Kopetzki made it 80-79 with just 21 seconds left in regulation. Three alternating fouls, two by CSP and one by MSU, accompanied by trips to the free throw line followed, with Minnesota State's Kyreese Willingham knocking down a pair of free throws with just six seconds on the clock to restore the two-possession lead and put the game away.

Minnesota State's Justin Eagins led all players in the game with 23 points and eight rebounds.

The Golden Bears will play their final game of 2024 on Saturday, hosting Minnesota Duluth at 3 p.m. at the Gangelhoff Center.