Memorial Magic Lives

MOORHEAD, Minn. (2/6/15) --- After the game play-by-play broadcaster Larry Knutson was asked were this game ranks among the most exciting games he has called in his career.

He quickly responded, "This one is near the top."

Five Cobbers scored in double-figures, including a career high 35 points for Tom Fraase and another career high from Dylan Alderman with 27 points to help pull off the comeback win.

Concordia overcame a 15-point deficit in the second half to force overtime and gutted out a 114-107 double-overtime victory over Gustavus to remain tied with St. John's for second place in the MIAC.

CC keeps pace among the conference's top teams and now sits at 14-7 overall and 11-5 in MIAC contests. The Gusties drop to 9-12 overall and 6-10 in conference play.

The Cobbers led 10-6 a few minutes into the game following triples from Fraase and Austin Nelson, but GAC went on an 11-0 run to make it 17-10 with 10:04 to play in the first half.

Fraase scored five quick points in the half's closing minutes, yet the Gusties led 34-27 at recess.

Alderman scored on two of the first three possessions in the second half to cut the deficit to 34-31, but Gustavus answered with a 17-5 run, scoring on seven consecutive possessions to pull ahead 51-36 with 14:34 to play. It would be their largest lead of the contest.

Concordia began to slowly dig their way out of the hole. Fraase knocked down a trifecta and hit a pair of free throws and Jordan Bolger scored on back-to-back possessions to make it 54-45.

Moments later Nelson canned a 3-pointer to start a four-possession stretch where Concordia would score on four straight trips down the floor. Unfortunately for the Cobbers while they were scoring on the offensive end, Gustavus' Chad Poppen hit triples on two of three possessions.

The four straight scores brought the game to within six points at 64-58 with 5:34 to play in regulation.

As the second half dwindled, Concordia was forced to play the fouling game. Gustie star Gary Cooper hit seven of eight attempt from the foul line. The one miss would would be the difference in sending the game into overtime. The Cobbers scored on their final ten possessions of regulation which included a tip-in from senior Brady Syverson at the buzzer to send it to overtime.

The end-game dramatics played out in the final eight seconds when the Cobber Corn Crew student section upped their enthusiasm and Cooper missed the front end of a one-and-one. Alderman got possession of the ball and raced down the court and dished to Syverson to tie the game 78-78.

Bolger scored the first basket of the overtime, followed by four free throws from Fraase to make it 84-80.

Cooper then scored six of the next eight to help the Gusties regain the lead at 87-84.

Alderman started the CC overtime comeback. He drove the lane and finished through contact and converted the old fashioned 3-point play to tie the game. However, Cooper booked it down and did the same thing on the opposite end to make it a three-point game.

Needing a 3-pointer with seven seconds left, Fraase answered the bell with nothing but net from 27 feet to send the game to a second overtime at 92-92.

With Syverson in foul trouble, Isaac Anderson picked a prime time to dump in his first field goal of the game. He scored the first basket of the second additional five-minute period to finally put the Cobbers ahead for good.

Concordia scored on five of the first six possessions in double overtime. Fraase had eight points in that stretch.

Cooper dropped in the first seven points for GAC and then Alderman continued his cputch play at the end of games. He went 3-of-4 from the line and scored seven points in the last 47 seconds to put the game out of reach.

The stat line was very similar for both teams. Points in the paint were even at 44-44 but CC held a slim 35-30 edge in rebounds. The Cobbers had just one more turnover (16-15) and Gustavus had 19 points off of turnovers compared to CC's 15 points.

The teams went a combined 56-of-69 (81.1%) from the charity stripe with the Gusties going 25-of-30 (83.3%) to the Cobbers' 31-of-39 (79.5%).

In the first overtime, Gustavus went 4-for-6 from the field and a perfect 5-of-5 from the foul line while Concordia went 4-of-9 from the floor and 6-of-6 from the charity stripe.

CC prevailed in the second overtime, going 6-of-8 from the field and 9-for-12 from the line while GAC shot 5-of-11 from the field with three costly turnovers that led to baskets for the Cobbers.

Cooper, who was injured the first time the two teams meet, had an exceptional game and led four Gusties in double-figures. He poured in a 39 points. In 42 minutes played, he went 12-of-21 from the floor, 1-of-2 from beyond the arc and a stealthy 14-of-15 from the foul line.

POINTS, WE LIKE POINTS
Concordia's 114 points on Saturday was their most since December 14, 2004, when they defeated Minn.-Morris 115-108 in overtime.

CONSIDER THIS
Someway, somehow the Cobber trio of Jordan Bolger, Brady Syverson and Dylan Alderman did not foul out. Alderman picked up his fourth foul with 8:43 remaining in regulation while Bolger got his with 27 seconds left in the second half. Meanwhile, Syverson tallied his fourth personal with 2:57 to play in the first overtime. The three combined to play 118 minutes, and 37:07 of the minutes were spent on the floor with four fouls.

CLUTCH PERFORMANCE
Alderman tallied 17 of his career-high 27 points with four fouls, and continued to be money in the final minutes of play. He went 5-of-7 from the charity stripe in the last four minutes and the two overtime periods. He is now 35-for-39 from the stripe in the final four minutes plus overtime for the season. To go along with his 27 points on 9-of-13 shooting, he added five boards, five assists and a steal.

IT RUNS IN THE FAMILY
Tom Fraase was featured on the front of the Gameday program and didn't shy away from the spotlight. He logged a career-high 35 points on 9-of-14 shooting from the floor, including 5-for-8 from beyond the arc and 12-for-13 from the foul striple. He also hauled down seven rebounds, dished out three dimes and pocketed four steals. Fraase surpasses his brother John Fraase's career high of 31 points (*John had 24 rebounds that game).

IRON MEN
Bolger, Nelson and Fraase each played 47 minutes against the Gusties, a career-high for all three of them.

FIVE GUYS PLAYING AS ONE UNIT
All five Cobbers scored in double figures, with Bolger scoring 19, Syverson adding 13 and Nelson contributing 12 points to accompany Fraase and Alderman's big days.

QUOTABLE
"The emotions are high after this one. It was a battle and we somehow grinded this out. We aren't done yet, we have a long way to go in accomplishing our goals for this season," Tom Fraase following his teams win against Gustavus.

WHAT'S NEXT?
Concordia will head to the gym tomorrow in preparation for St. Mary's on Monday, February 8 at 7 p.m. The Cardinals sit at 7-13 overall and 6-10 in league play and are coming off an 89-80 loss against the Johnnies. The Cobbers beat SMU 81-65 back on January 13 in Winona.