Finishing Kick Starts Too Late

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. (1/31/18)---Concordia's kick started too late to catch No.4-ranked St. John's.

The Cobbers waited until the final turn to try and catch the Johnnies but the lead was too much as Concordia fell 86-72.

Concordia outscored St. John's 20-5 in the final 6:36 of the second half but it wasn't enough as the Johnnies had opened up a 29-point lead that allowed them to hold off the sprinting Cobbers at the end.

The Cobbers outshot the Johnnies from the field and outside the arc but the game came down to the free throw line where St. John's attempted 26 more foul shots than CC and made 18 more than the Cobbers attempted. Concordia went 3-for-8 (37.5%) from the foul line for the game while St. John's was 26-for-34 (76.5%). The 26-foul shot margin ties for the most in any game for the Cobbers this season.  Concordia went to the line 26 more times than Macalester on Saturday.

Concordia (5-14/3-11 MIAC) had three players factor in double figures for the game. Jacob Pazdernik and Jordan Davis had 14 points each while Collin Larson added 13. Pazdernik went 4-for-4 from outside the arc - all four came in the second half. Davis grabbed four rebounds while Larson put up a team-high six assists.

The Cobbers connected on 50.0% of both their shots from the floor (30-for-60) and from long range (9-for-18).

St. John's (18-1/14-0 MIAC) shot 47.2% (25-for-53) from the field and 41.7% (10-for-24) from 3-point range. The Johnnies held a 33-30 edge in rebounds.

STAT ADVANTAGE: Besides the big difference in free throws, St. John's also held an 18-10 edge in points off of turnovers as CC had four more miscues in the game.

 WHAT'S NEXT: Concordia will start the month of February with three straight home games. The Cobbers will host Augsburg on Saturday, Feb. 3 at 1 p.m. That will be the first of three games in five days. The Auggies are 15-5 in all games and 10-5 in the MIAC. They are tied for third place in the MIAC standings.