ST. CLOUD, Minn. – The Concordia-St. Paul men's basketball team (18-9, 13-8 NSIC) played its final road game of the regular season at St. Cloud State (22-5, 19-2 NSIC) on Wednesday evening, falling to the Huskies 89-78 at Halenbeck Hall.

Owen Carlson led the way on offense for Concordia, scoring 19 points while knocking down seven of his nine field goal attempts and going 4-5 from beyond the arc. The sophomore also pulled down five rebounds and added an assist.

Junior Ben Kopetzki finished second on the team with 15 points, seven assists, and five rebounds. It was his second game this season with seven or more assists, with the only other instance being an eight-assist outing against Minot State last month.

Senior Sam West scored 14 points with five assists and a team-high seven rebounds, and Ryan Johnson added 10 points, two rebounds, and an assist.

The Golden Bears started the game strong, using four early triples to build a 16-6 lead just over five minutes into the game. Concordia remained in control in the following minutes, expanding the lead to 15 points at 32-17 just past the midway point in the half. CSP went ice cold at the point, with the Huskies using a 20-0 scoring run covering nearly 10 minutes to take their first lead of the game. St. Cloud State continued to push its lead in the final minutes of the half, eventually taking a nine-point lead into the locker room at halftime.

Concordia began the half on a hot streak once again coming out of the break, using a 16-7 scoring run, including five points each from Carlson and Kopetzki, to chip away at the deficit and knot the game up at 50-50 with 14:22 to play. The Bears hung around in the following minutes as the game remained tied at 55 each nearly two minutes later, but the Huskies scored 10 unanswered from there to rebuild a double-digit advantage.

CSP's best chance to get back in the game came in the last four minutes on an 8-0 scoring run punctuated by a transition three from Carlson that pulled Concordia within five points at 81-76. That proved to be as close as they would get, as SCSU closed the game on an 8-2 run to secure the victory.

Despite the loss, the Golden Bears were the more efficient team on offense, shooting 45.3% (29-64) from the field and 41.4% (12-29) from beyond the arc, while the Huskies shot 43.9% (29-66) from the field and 36.4% (12-33) from deep. Second chance points proved to be the difference in the game as St. Cloud State converted 15 offensive boards into 21 points while Concordia managed just nine points off 12 offensive rebounds.

The Huskies, who have now won 15 straight games, were paced by Azayah Washington with 20 points and four assists, while Anish Ramlall added 19 points and seven rebounds.

The Golden Bears will wrap up the regular season this Saturday when they host Minnesota State (18-10, 12-8 NSIC) at the Gangelhoff Center for senior day.