Bolger's Double-Double Clips Cardinals

MOORHEAD, Minn.  (1/03/15)—The team statistics were almost even between Concordia and St. Mary's. The difference in the Cobbers' 71-63 win was the play of junior forward Jordan Bolger who game highs in points and rebounds in helping CC post its first MIAC win of the season.

Bolger had a season-high 21 points and a season-high 13 rebounds in helping Concordia win their second straight game. The Cobbers are now 5-3 in all games and 1-2 in the MIAC. St. Mary's loses for the sixth straight game and is now 1-6 overall and 1-4 in the conference.

"Just being aggressive," answered Bolger when asked what was the key to his play on Saturday.

"The team put their trust in me," continued Bolger. "They (teammates) got me in good spots down low to make buckets and I was lucky to make them today."

Bolger's luck led to an 8-for-15 shooting day from the floor. He was also 5-for-6 from the free throw line after missing all four of his attempts in the team's last game.

"My Grandpa got on me for missing the free throws last game," joked Bolger. "I made him proud today."

St. Mary's scored the first five points in the game but then Concordia recovered to take a one-point lead at 8-7. The teams would stay within five points of one another for the remainder of the first half. CC was able to outscore SMU 6-3 in the final 1:38 of the opening period to take a four-point lead at 33-29 into the break.

Bolger connected on the opening basket of the second half and Concordia never looked back. The Cobbers pushed the lead to double digits within the first four minutes of the final frame and survived a handful of St. Mary's streaks to come away with the eight-point victory.

Concordia shot 49.1% (28-for-57) from the floor for the game. CC also hit on 62.5% (5-for-8) of their shots from outside the arc and on 10-of-16 (62.5%) of their attempts from the foul line. The Cardinals also shot above 40-percent from the floor, made five 3-point field goals and were 11-for-12 (85.7%) from the free throw line.

Concordia held a slight 32-31 edge in rebounding and CC had a mere two-point advantage in points in the paint.   

Brady Syverson and Brett Bergeson made clutch baskets throughout the game for CC. Syverson had his number called several times from out-of-bounds plays and finished with a season-high 13 points on a 6-for-15 shooting afternoon. He also came away with a game-high three steals and five rebounds. Bergeson made a trio of shots from behind the arc and had nine points in the game. He made two of his three shots from behind the arc in the final two minutes of the first half after SMU got to within two points on both occasions.

Senior Brandon Giese had a game-high four assists and finished with five points.

Concordia will have only 48 hours to savor the two-game win streak. CC hits the road to play at Macalester on Monday, Jan. 5 at 7:45 p.m.