Back-And-Forth Second Half Ends Back With Carleton

NORTHFIELD, Minn. (1/08/14)—Concordia finished on the "back" portion of a back-and-forth game at Carleton. The Cobbers watched a last-second game-winning shot bounce off the rim and fell 54-53 to the Knights in the second game of their back-to-back conference road trip.

Concordia (6-7/2-6 MIAC) never led in the first half and fell behind by as many as 11 points at the start of the second period before mounting a huge comeback rally. The Cobbers went on a 13-2 run that turned a 45-32 deficit into a 45-45 tie game with 8:05 left to play. CC then scored eight of the next 11 points to take a 53-48 lead with 4:08 left in the game. Unfortunately for Concordia, Jordan Bolger's basket at the 4:08 mark would be the final points they would score in the contest.
 
Carleton (5-5/3-2 MIAC) responded by scoring the final six points and went 1-for-2 from the floor and 4-for-5 from the free throw line to seal the victory. The Knight defense also had a hand in the win down the stretch. Carleton held the Cobbers without a field goal in the final four minutes of play - CC was 0-for-5 in that stretch.

The Cobbers held the edge in almost every statistical category except in points scored and free throws. Concordia attempted 17 more field goals in the game, made one more basket from the floor and two more 3-pointers. CC also outrebounded the Knights 37-26 and held a 13-3 edge in offensive rebounds.

Carleton claimed the win by getting to the line seven more times and making five more free throws. The Cobbers were 8-for-14 (57.1%) from the foul stripe while Carleton was 13-for-21 (61.9%).

Concordia had a balanced scoring attack all night until Bolger started to get on a roll late in the second half. The Cobbers had seven players score at least four points in the game. That is as many players as Carleton played the entire game. Bolger was 1-for-5 from the floor in the first period but then went 4-for-8 from the floor in the second half and finished with a team-high 11 points.

Brady Syverson had seven points and a team-high eight eight rebounds in 18 minutes of play. He suffered a lower leg injury at the start of the second half and did not return for the remainder of the game.

Matt Zimmerman came off the bench to add nine points and collect six rebounds while Tom Fraase had six points and six rebounds.

Concordia will now have a rare seven-day break before returning to action. The Cobbers will host St. John's on Wednesday, Jan. 15 at 7 p.m.