Johnson's Hot Hand Outweighed By 3-Point Barrage

MOORHEAD, Minn. (11/11/22)--- Cobber junior transfer Matthew Johnson put on a shooting display for the ages in one of the highest scoring games in recent history. Johnson exploded for 42 points, but it wasn't enough as Concordia fell 99-86 to Crown College.

The 185 points scored by both teams is the most in a single game for the Cobbers since the 2016-17 season when Concordia beat Valley City State 99-96 in overtime.

Johnson exploded for 42 points on just 15 field goal attempts. He made 13 of his 15 field goal attempts, was 6-of-8 from outside the arc and a perfect 10-for-10 from the free throw line. His 42 points is one of only a handful of 40-point games in Cobber history. The Concordia single-game record is 49 points which was set by Dick Peterson in 1970.

The 42 points is the most by Johnson at any level of competition.   

Johnson, who averaged 2.8 points per shot attempt, scored 23 of his points in the first half, and finished the game with four assists and a pair of rebounds.

Concordia was excellent throughout the first half. They shot 53.1% (17-for-32) in the opening 20 minutes of play, and at one point lead the Polars 47-31. However, Crown got on a roll in the last 2-minutes of the half and maintained momentum after halftime. The Polars made two-thirds of their shots from the floor in the final period and went 10-of-17 from deep. For the half, they erupted for 58 points.

The Polars had a noticeable size advantage over the Cobbers, and were absurdly hot from beyond the arc throughout the game. They converted an unbelievable 16-of-29 attempts (55.2%) from distance. Crown was led by senior Cade Carroll who had 37 points and junior Jacob Van Dam who added 23.

Beyond the stellar performance by Johnson, the Cobbers got solid contributions from senior Jackson Jangula (9 points, 8 rebounds), sophomore Rowan Nelson (12 points, 6 rebounds) and sophomore Dylan Inniger (11 points, 4 steals).

Concordia, despite their size disadvantage, held their own on the boards. They outrebounded Crown 30-28. CC also held a 19-16 edge in free throws, but were unable to overcome the barrage of 3-pointers. While Crown didn't use their height inside as much as one might expect, it showed in their ability to continually take uncontestable jumpers throughout the second half.

UP NEXT: The Cobbers will have to wait a week to get another chance at their first victory, as they head to Duluth on Saturday, Nov. 19 to take on St. Scholastica at 1 p.m.