Early And Late Success Key Win

ST. PETER, Minn. (1/02/15)—Concordia started their game at Gustavus on fire and then went on a 22-13 run in the final seven minutes to earn an 82-74 win in the first game of the 2016 calendar year.

The Cobbers  made 15 of their first 16 shots in the game and rolled to a 16-point lead late in the first half. The hot start was offset by a tepid second stanza and Concordia had to outscore the Gusties down the stretch in order to earn their second straight conference win.

The win gets Concordia back in the thick of the MIAC standings. The Cobbers started the year with three straight league losses but since have won two straight and are now 2-3 and are now tied for sixth place. CC reaches the .500 level in all games. They are 5-5 overall.

Gustavus drops their fourth straight conference contest. The Gusties won their league opener but are now 1-4. GAC is 4-6 in all games.

Concordia enjoyed a 10-point lead at the half but then watched as Gustavus methodically cut into the lead. The Gusties shut down the Cobber red-hot offense after the break and then used an 8-0 stretch to cut the lead to a single point at the midway point of the period.

Gustavus took its only lead of the game at 61-60 with 7:41 to play in regulation. They key point of the game came in the next five possessions. The Cobbers were able to force two turnovers and then used a jumper from Tom Fraase, a conventional 3-point play from Jordan Bolger and a made free throw from Austin Nelson to reclaim the momentum and grab a five-point lead at 66-61.

The final critical point of the win came at the free throw line in the final 5-plus minutes of play. Concordia was a perfect 8-for-8 from the foul line to cement the eight-point win.

The Cobbers wound up shooting a season-high 64.0% (32-for-50) from the floor and 50.0% (4-for-8) from outside the arc. The 32 made field goals is also a season high.

Gustavus shot 44.8% (26-for-58) from the field and 41.7% (5-for-12) from 3-point range.

AIR JORDAN
Senior Jordan Bolger scored 13 of his game-high 23 points in the second half. He also grabbed six of his game-high 10 rebounds in the final 20 minutes of play. The 23 points are a season-high for Bolger and it marks the eighth straight game he has scored in double figures. It is also Bolger's third double-double in the last four games.

Bolger leads the team in scoring and rebounding this season. He is averaging 18.6 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. Bolger is second in the MIAC in scoring and fourth in rebounding.

Bolger has now scored 967 points and needs only 33 more to reach the 1,000-point milestone.

GUESS WHAT WE DID OVER THE HOLIDAY BREAK?
Both teams were dialed in at the foul line. The Cobbers went 14-for-17 (82.4%) from the free throw line and Gustavus was 17-for-20 (85.0%). The made free throw total for both teams are season highs in conference games.         
              
FUN AT THE FREE THROW LINE II
Bolger was 5-for-5 from the free throw line on Saturday and has now made nine straight free throws. Bolger shot 63.9% from the free throw line in his first three seasons at CC but this year is shooting 82.4% from the foul line.

DOUBLE-DIGIT DYLAN
Junior guard Dylan Alderman scored 14 points on a 5-for-6 shooting performance. Alderman has scored more than 10 points in three games this season and the Cobbers are now 3-0 when he records at least 11 points.

ANDERSON AROUND THE HOOP
Senior Isaac Anderson put up his fourth double-digit scoring game of the season. Anderson was 6-for-9 from the floor. All of his points came in the paint and he was a big reason the Cobbers enjoyed a 40-24 advantage in points in the paint.        
      
WHAT'S NEXT
Concordia will host a pair of big conference games this week against teams at the top of the MIAC. The Cobbers will square off against Carleton on Wednesday at 5:45 p.m. and then face St. John's on Saturday for a 3 p.m. tipoff. The Knights are 3-1 in MIAC play and have won four of their past five games while the Johnnies have won five straight games.