Second Half Demise

STORY LINE: For the second straight conference game Concordia held the lead at halftime only to have their opponent come back in the second half to prevail for a win. The Cobbers led Augsburg 33-32 at the break but were outscored 49-38 in the final 20 minutes of play and lost 81-71 in Minneapolis.

RECORDS: The loss is the fourth straight for Concordia who falls to 1-6 on the season. CC is now 0-3 in the MIAC. Augsburg wins for the second straight game and is now 6-1 overall and 3-1 in conference play.

FIRST HALF SUCCESS: Concordia took a 1-point lead at the break due to a strong inside game. The Cobbers outscored Augsburg 20-10 in points in the paint and held a 27-15 edge in rebounding. Junior center John Reiten had 10 of his 18 points in the first half while four of the five CCC starters had at least five rebounds in the period.

SECOND HALF DEMISE: The tables were turned in the second half as the Auggies held a 16-14 advantage in rebounds and made 55.6% (15-for-27) of their shots from the floor as compared to 48.3% (14-for-29) for Concordia. Augsburg also attempted 10 more free throws and went 13-for-16 from the foul line while the Cobbers were 5-for-6 in free throws in the second half.

SHOOTING STUFF: Both teams connected on 26 field goals in the game. Concordia finished the game by shooting 41.6% (26-for-62) from the field which was just shy of the mark of the Auggies at 42.6% (26-for-61). Augsburg made three 3-pointers (10-7) and went 19-for-23 from the free throw line. The Cobbers were 12-for-14 at the foul stripe.

TURNOVER TAKES: Concordia committed 14 turnovers while Augsburg only had six miscues in the game. The Auggies held a 13-5 edge in points off of turnovers.

COLLIN COMES BACK: Senior guard Collin Larson regained his outside shooting touch and led the Cobbers in scoring. Larson went 4-for-4 from outside the arc and put up a season-high 20 points. Larson was also 6-for-10 from the field. Both shooting percentages were season highs.

REITEN NUMBERS: John Reiten had a career-best scoring game. He went 8-for-14 from the floor and finished with 18 points. That is four points better than his previous career best which came earlier in the year against Oak Hills Christian.   
    
UP NEXT: Concordia will finally host its regular-season home opener on Wednesday, Dec. 12. After seven straight games to start the regular season the Cobbers will have a chance to play in Memorial Auditorium when they battle St. Thomas at 7:45 p.m. The Tommies have won six straight after dropping their opener and are 6-1 on the season. They are coming off a 99-50 win at home over Carleton on Saturday.